


Cupid's Rising

by AuthorA97



Category: Rise of the Guardians (2012)
Genre: Morgan or Darcy?, Not even I really know, OC is Cupid, Temporary Amnesia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-08
Updated: 2019-02-14
Packaged: 2019-07-28 06:21:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 23
Words: 35,922
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16235951
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AuthorA97/pseuds/AuthorA97
Summary: She has no idea how long she's been doing this. Her memories only go back three months, she could have been doing it for centuries before and she wouldn't know. But, if she doesn't remember it couldn't be that important.





	1. Manny

_ It was cold. _

It was cold.

Why did the cold worry me so much?

Was it the cold, or just the absence of heat that worried me?

Why did the word heat make me think of the color purple?

Why did the color purple make my heart ache in grief?

Why did I not know what any of this all had to do with each? Or if they even were related?

Too many questions. So few answers.

Not knowing worried me.

Everything worried me.

I was scared.

It was cold, and not warm, and I was scared.

Did I even want to bring up the fact that everything felt  _ off _ . My ears were ringing in this weird way. 

My head felt dizzy. Everything was moving too fast, yet nothing moved at all. 

There was something wrong-something behind me that couldn’t let me stand straight. It took me a long moment to balance out my feet.

I looked myself over, instinctively knowing that what I was seeing wasn’t what how I looked before. My clothing was fit for a warrior. It was also kinda girly.

The pure white feathery skirt of it barely reached past my thighs. Draped over it was gold and gray fabric covered in tiny yellow hearts. The bust was red and shaped on my chest like a heart. Golden straps crossed over it with a new smoothness. The gold was reflected softly in the moonlight.

Though I liked the shoes. They were dark red with white strings, like sneakers, reaching my knees. They looked wonderful on me. There was a fluttering noise the longer I thought about it.

Suddenly, I realized neither of my feet were on ground.

In my shock, I fell back to the ground with a loud thud.

I screamed in surprise. I had  _ wings?! _

It was terrifying. I screamed again. The wings were red, the same red as the hearts on my chest. The wings were flapping all about.

It occurred to me after too long that these were  _ my _ wings. I could control them as easily as I controlled my arms. With a deep breath, I made a thought to relax my wings. They stretched out farther than my arm width, catching the small breezes with my feathers.

In a strong burst, I was in the sky.

This time I laughed.

I laughed as I flew among the wide open sky. As my fingers danced in clouds. As my wild blonde curls danced in my own breezes.

The flying was so fun that I forgot...that I forgot.

When I flew ages passed. There was no reason to keep track of time as I flew.

No worries were in my mind or heart.

Not until my feet hit the ground.

That’s when everything hit me again. The worry, the doubt, the pain. The questions of the who, the what, the  _ why _ .

It didn’t make sense.

Until I heard the heard Manny.

_ “Cupid.” _ A warm, gentle voice spoke in my mind. I instinctively knew it came from the moon, though I saw no part of it moving. I knew his name was Manny, and that he would always have my back. _ “Take your arrows and fly.” _

I tilted my head in confusion. Arrows? What...what arrows-

My foot hit something. Glancing down at the dirt, I saw a bundle of arrows with sharp golden tips. There was a bow next to them, the handle dark red while the string was silver.

I picked up the bow, slinging it over my back. It missed my wings, resting on the point between in my back. I grabbed the bundle of arrows, putting them on my side.

Since I had what Manny told me to get, I took to the skies.

My problems faded away again.

 

==CR==

 

As I flew, there were things I noticed.

Buildings.

People.

Trees and birds.

Airplanes, occasionally. I had to dive to avoid those.

Flying was a second nature to me. Guess it should be, I’ve had these wings all my life.

Or as much of that life I could remember.

All two hours of it.

As I flew over another city, I flew down to one of the trees. The tree felt of a safe haven, not to mention that every tree I’d seen all day was covered in snow. This mighty oak was the only tree for miles that wouldn’t freeze my wings off.

Resting in the tree, I opted to people watching.

People were milling about in the area. They were bundled under coats and jackets, or playing in the snow that must’ve fallen recently.

I didn’t know.

Most of me didn’t care.

Well, I didn’t care until the boy threw a frisbee.

At my tree.

Hitting me.

In the head.

While hitting was a strong word. Hitting requires physical contact. The frisbee flew through my face, like my face hadn’t been there.

It got stuck no the branch behind me. That didn’t stop me from grunting in pain at the frisbee going through my head on instinct.

It took me a long moment to realize why I wasn’t feeling any pain.

It was like being a ghost.

That was cool.

I could do the ghost thing.

Yeah. Easy peesy.

Or I thought I could. Until the boy climbed up the tree for his frisbee.

I jumped when his hand reached through my body.

Taking an arrow from my bundle, I stabbed the boy’s arm with it. Despite him going through me, the arrow hit skin.

Once it did though, it burst into red sparkles. The sparkles spread out around his boy, focusing on his eyes which gained red hearts before fading away.

Both the boy and I were confused.

His eyes caught sight of a squirrel on a nearby branch. His eyes lit up in delight, and he began to give chase to it. The squirrel jumped out of the tree. The boy followed. I watched the exchange, worried about the boy and the squirrel. 

Eventually the boy caught the squirrel. He cuddled the squirrel to his face, snuggling.

The squirrel tried to fight back.

In a blink of my eye, there was another arrow in my hand. I instinctively launched it at the squirrel. He squeaked at the attack, fighting another moment until he curled around the boy’s shoulder.

Without proof I knew a long bond had been formed, and that the boy would be better off for it in the long run.

Without proof I knew I would be doing this again to other people.

However, I needed proof. 

Flying back up into the sky, I searched for more people to shoot with the arrows.

There was a man and woman arguing. I tilted my head at them, not paying attention to the exact words. There was a tone of them being coworkers but one of them was going to quit and the other couldn’t figure out why.

I fired an arrow at the man, than the woman.

One confessed they didn’t want the other to leave because they were in love.

The other confessed to much the same.

I beamed. Science had been on my side again!

Of course then came the doubt, what would happen when I ran out of arrows? I had twenty-one at my count earlier, I should have seventeen now. I checked the bundle at my side.

To my delight, I still had twenty-one.

_ Science, you just gave up on me, didn’t you? _

Still. Couldn’t be mad at that.

I had unlimited arrows.

_ For some reason, I was reminded of the color purple. _


	2. Call of the Guardians

_ My fellow Guardians - It is our job to watch over the children of the world, and keep them safe - to bring wonder, hope and dreams. And so, I’ve called us all here for one reason, and one reason only -the children are in danger. Much of this we hear over the following.” _

_ An enemy we have kept at bay for centuries has finally decided to strike back. We alone can stop him. _

 

==CR==

 

The Guardians united in the North Pole. 

Now this did not happen often. The four Guardians were so busy with their duties, they could rarely meet for a proper meeting. Sometimes, maybe once every two or three months, things would work out. 

On emergencies, they had no other choice.

North- or as the children called him, Santa- had summoned them to the North Pole. He gestured with a large arm to the table of treats he’d made for the meeting. His guests weren’t amused. 

More specifically Bunnymund.

Bunnymund wasn’t amused.

“Cookies? Eggnog, anyone?” North offered.

“Oh, this better be good, North.” Bunnymund warned. North didn’t reply.

Through all of this, the Tooth Fairy was rapidly talking to her little fairies. “Montreal, sector six: ten premolars, eight incisors and twelve canines. Steer clear of the wild goose migration.”

The Sandman- Sandy to his friends- flew in on a bi-plane.

“Sandy, thank you for coming.” North greeted happily.

The Sandman made multiple sand pictures appear of his head. As the Guardian of Dreams, he had the most work. Night was always happening all of the planet, and he didn’t have birds like Tooth.

Behind them both, Bunnymund was rolling his eyes at North ignoring his questions. He hopped over towards the fireplace, deciding he needed more warmth.

“I know, I know, but I obviously wouldn’t have called you all here unless it was serious.” North assured Sandy.

Sandy hummed.

The four Guardians converged in the center of the meeting room. 

“The Boogie Man was here - at the Pole.” North revealed. He pointed towards the giant glowing globe.

“Pitch? Pitch Black?” Tooth gasped. “Here?!”

“Yes!” North replied. “There was black sand covering the globe.”

“What, what...what do you mean black sand?” Bunnymund asked.

“And then a shadow!” North continued.

“Hold on, hold on, I thought you said you saw Pitch.” Bunnymund 

North “Well, ah, not exactly...” North 

“Not exactly?” Bunnymund scoffed. He turned to Sandy. “Can you believe this guy?”

Sandy replied with a ‘?’ above his head. 

“Yeah, you said it, Sandy.”

Sandy huffed silently.

“Look, he is up to something very bad.” North stressed to his fellow Guardians. “I feel it.” He grabbed his stomach. “In my belly.”

“Hang on, hang on, you mean to say, you summoned me here  _ three days before Easter _ \- because of your belly?” Bunnymund asked, astounded once again at how dramatic North was. “Mate, if I did this to you three days before Christmas-”

In the background, Tooth was giving more instructions to her fairies. “Argentina. Priority alert! A batch of bicuspids in Buenos Aires.”

“Please. Bunny. Easter is not Christmas.”

“Here we go...”

Sandy wondered how they got anything done.

He took an offered mug of eggnog from a yeti. The yetis always made it how he liked it.

Sandy tensed when he saw Manny, starting to move in the way of North’s skylight. 

“North, I, I don’t have time for this. I’ve still got two million eggs to finish up.”

“No matter how much you paint, is still egg!”

Sandy waved his arms about. He pointed up to the moon, not getting their attention. 

“Look, mate, I’m dealing with perishables. Right. You’ve got all year to prepare.”

“Pittsburg, boy eight, two molars. Saltwater taffy.”

Sandy tried to whistle for attention. It never worked well, since he didn’t have vocal chords. Sometimes they noticed the large cloud of sand it made over his head. This was one of those times they didn’t. 

“Why are rabbits always so nervous.”

“And why are you always such a blowhard!”

“Ontario, sector nine: five canines, two molars, and fourteen incisors. Is that all in one house?”

Sandy tried flags this time. Again with no success. The moon was moving more now, nearly shining his beam inside the Pole.

“Tooth! Can’t you see we’re trying to argue.”

“Sorry, not all of us get to work one night a year.” Tooth grinned down at Sandy. “Am I right, Sandy?”

Feeling hope, Sandy made an arrow pointing up.

Tooth gasped. Just when Sandy thought he’d done it, Tooth turned to her fairies again. “San Diego, sector two! Five incisors, a bicuspid and a really loose molar on stand-by.”

Again, Sandy wondered how they got anything done when they were together.

Giving up, Sandy walked over to a nearby elf.

“Come on, mate, Pitch went out with the dark ages. We made sure of that - remember?”

“I know it was him. We have serious situation!”

“Well, I’ve got a serious situation with some eggs.”

“Hey, I hate to interrupt the, ‘We work so hard once a year club’ but could we concentrate on the matter-”

Sandy shook the elf with all his might. The bell on his hat jingled loudly.

The other three Guardians looked to him in confusion. Also affronted that Sandy interrupted their  _ extremely  _ important discussions, thank you.

Sandy made a moon of sand above his head before pointing up.

“Aah! Man in Moon!” North cheered. “Sandy, why didn’t you say something?”

Sandy wanted to grab that elf again, and beat North with it.

“It’s been a long time old friend! What is big news?” North asked to the moon.

The moon shone down its light behind the Guardians. It cast a shadow of a man of which they were familiar.

“It  _ is _ Pitch.” Bunnymund breathed out.

North smuggly tapped his belly. “Manny...what must we do?”

The shadow disappeared. The light shined brighter on the ground- a pillar of crystal rose up from beneath the floor.

“Ah, guys, you know what this means?” Tooth asked, actually having no idea.

North was in awe. He knew of course- Manny had told him this when he gave him the Pold. “He’s choosing a new Guardian.”

“What?! Why?” Bunnymund asked. 

“Must be big deal.” North shrugged in explanation. “Manny thinks we need help!”

“Since when do we need help?!” Bunnymund scoffed.

“I wonder who it’s gonna be?” Tooth chirped. Sandy popped a clover above his head. “Maybe the Leprechaun?” 

Bunnymund crosses his paws. “Please not the groundhog, please not the groundhog.”

A bright flash revealed a blue shadow. A warrior esque woman with long wings, a bow in her hand with an arrow in the other.

“Cupid?” Bunnymund asked, surprised. “But...but she hates kids!”

It was true. The woman was known to cause broken hearts. She rarely- if ever- made two people fall in love. Most of her victims-as they were so aptly named- ended up with broken hearts not even a day after she shot them.

She’d only been around three months- and she’d caused more broken hearts than before she’d appeared.

Bunnymund had wondered about why Manny created her in the first place. All she did was bring pain to people. 

The light flashed again. It showed a slight, hooded, bearing a familiar hooked staff.

“And Jack Frost. Incredible.  _ Two  _ new Guardians!” North cheered.

The fairies all sigh and swoon as the Guardians stand there, stunned.

“Ah, I take it back! The Groundhog’s fine!” Bunnymund told Manny.

“Well, ah, I mean Cupid is a bit of a stretch, but, as long Jack helps to ah...to protect the children, right?” Tooth suggested, not doing a good job of hiding her flushed cheeks. 

Sandy liked them. He popped two check marks above his head.

“Jack Frost!? Cupid?!” Bunnymund argued to the others. “They don’t care about children! All he does is freeze water pipes and mess with my egg hunts. She smashes people’s hearts, I don’t even wanna  _ know  _ what she’ll do to my eggs come Easter! Right? They’re irresponsible, selfish-”

“Guardians.” North stated. He grinned with pride.

“Jack Frost and Cupid are many things, but they are  _ not  _ Guardians.” Bunnymund argued sternly.

Manny, looking down at them, had hope.

 


	3. Valentine's Day: Extended Cut

_ Ireland _

 

There was a sweet boy, playing in some of the marsh. He wasn’t popular by any means, I’m gonna say it’s just a matter of right place right time.

I let loose an arrow at him.

He didn’t flinch at the arrow piercing his chest. 

They never did. None of them noticed the arrow. Just it’s effects. I realized that early on in this world.

The boy was walking ahead. He didn’t notice the other boy in his way until they collided.

I watched in delight as the boy I hit gawked at the boy he hit. Second boy was apologizing for the whole thing. First boy was stunned silent.

_ ‘Kiss him. Kiss him. JUST KISS ALREADY!’ _

Except they didn’t. Second boy got up, running off. First boy hadn’t moved.

As the second boy got further away, the one I hit let out a choked sound. It didn’t take a genius to know he was crying. Crying because the boy he loved had walked away. 

That’s what all the others did. The one they loved, on some level everyone I hit with an arrow thought the other didn’t love them back.

I wanted to scream in aggravation.

Nothing has worked.  _ Nothing _ !

Three months of this. Not one of my plans has worked.  _ NOT A SINGLE ONE! _

If I hit one person, they cried. If I hit two, the second would fall in love with someone else. Moon forbid I hit three, because the third would fall in love with the first and just turn the whole goddamn thing into a bad Shakespeare play.

“Time to go home.” I mused, hoping that target practice would get my mind off things. Like failure.

 

==CR==

_ Charleston, South Carolina _

 

I’d changed my outfit from the monstrosity it was on my First Day _ (Night? day? I’m sticking with Day). _

Instead of a bright dress, this was more dark gear. My legs were covered in black leggings, and black boots. The dress part I kept, it was cute. Except instead of the colorful monstrosity from before I was wearing a green/brown camo dress that kept me hidden in the trees. Around my waist I had a belt that had a small sheath for a blade.

The arrows stayed gold, my wings stayed their color too. My hair was the same obnoxiously shade of yellow. Some things I couldn’t change. 

_ Stupid Manny. _

I fired an arrow at a tree.

_ Stupid arrows. Not doing their fucking job. _

Another arrow, this one nearly hitting a squirrel. 

I screamed in aggregation. “Why?!” I grumbled, looking up at the sky. It wasn’t yet sunset, but I could still see the moon in the sky. He was a smug asshole like that. “Why do they never  _ work _ ?”

The Moon was silent.

I fired an arrow at it.

Flying across the city, I smiled down at the people below.

There weren’t a lot of reasons why this place was ‘home’. It was where I first woke up after dying, which was a big win. 

...

Yeah that’s all I got.

This place has to be important if I died here, right? Otherwise...why did I keep coming back to a place I died? Manny was an asshole, so maybe he just brought me back in this awful town to be a bigger asshole.

There were a few things I liked about this city. There was this park- surrounded by trees I could hide in without anyone seeing. Not that I could be seen anyway- not enough kids believed in me. One of those believing kids was my target today.

I learned very fast that when people believed in you, they could see you. Now I don’t have a lot of Believers. That’s fine with me, if anything it’s ideal. Kids would be scared of me if they could see me firing arrows at them.

Flying to the park I landed in my favorite tree. There was another thing in the tree- a cherub.

That’s right.

I got cherubs.

For some reason, Manny gave me a whole race of creatures to lead. I’m not a leader. I’m not ready for that amount of authority.

Cherubs were these tiny little creatures- no bigger than a fist. They were pale white, with yellow bob haircuts, yellow eyes, and their arms were long wings instead of hands. Their bodies were covered complete in feathers. They were almost like swans with human heads. 

My cherubs didn’t have arrows. They had  _ stamps _ . Stupid  _ stamps _ , in a heart shape. They would just stamp the kid in the back of the neck, and do my work. The stamp was sling over their back like my bow

So I landed next to the cherub on the tree branch. I think this one was called Hamil.

“No change?” I asked.

Hamil shook his head.  He chittered, in what I could only think of a Squirrel Speak.  _ “She’s the same as before.” _

I huffed.

Gazing down at the bottom of the tree, I saw my target.

There was a seven-year-old girl sitting alone under the tree. She had dark blonde hair, tucked behind a purple butterfly barrette. Her blue eyes were focused on what she was scribbling in her notebook.

She was dressed in a blue sweater covered in little hearts, trying to ward off Jack’s cold. She wore a blue skirt, probably supposed to go with her white shirt. Her mother dressed her a bit early for Easter. She didn’t like that outfit, it was scratchy. 

Now, this kid was my pet project. I’d hit her with five arrows this week alone and she hasn’t shown interest in anything! Little Lilac Barclay. She has thicker skin than me!

“One more arrow?” I offered Hamil.

The cherub winced. He started to chitter a warning at me.

“Can’t hear you!” I fired the arrow. 

The cherub sighed. 

The arrow shot down, directly into Lilac’s head.

The girl paused.

Hamil and I held our breath.

Lilac looked to her left.

Hamil gasped.

Lilac...reached for a colored pencil, in the case beside her.

Hamil and I huffed.

“Nothing for you yet, huh, Lilac?” I asked, knowing she wouldn’t hear me from this high up. “You...you’re stubborn.”

Hamil chittered a question.

“No. I know this girl is capable of love.” I told Hamil. “She’s just...got a tough shell to crack.”

Hamil chittered again.

“No, my first arrow didn’t work. Even if it did, she would love two things.” I explained, kneeling down on the branch. “I don’t understand. She believes me, at the least she should  _ like  _ one of these things. Hold on...what’s she drawing?”

Hamil chittered in answer. Apparently she’d been drawing it all morning.

“A baby dragon in a tree?” I asked. “Why would she draw  _ that _ ?”

Hamil shrugged.

“Lilac Barclay!” A voice snapped. “Time to go!”

My wings spread to attention. I glared over at the woman walking up. This woman...something about her made me  _ mad. _ Her walk, her voice, her stupid blonde haircut. She was just  _ annoying _ . And her very  _ existence _ offended me.

Lilac gasped as the woman came up. The girl quickly pulled her art away from the woman’s feet. “You said I could stay until lunchtime!”

“Well I’m getting hungry. That  _ makes  _ it lunchtime.” The woman argued. She clicked her fingers. “Let’s get a move on.”

“But you  _ promised _ -”

“Now!” Mrs Barclay snapped.

I grabbed an arrow, aiming it at Mrs Barclay.

Hamil flew in front of my arrow. He waved his arms to keep me from firing it. I glared over him to Mrs Barclay. Moving the arrow so it was at aiming at the woman. Hamil moved again.

He was chittering rapidly. He was reminding me that the arrows wouldn’t hurt Mrs Barclay, they would just make her love something. Or-more likely-break her heart.

“Then let it break.” I hissed. 

Hamil shook his head.

“She shouldn’t snap at Lilac.” I snarled angrily in Hamil’s face. 

Below, Lilac was packing away her drawing and colored pencils.

“Maybe this time it’ll work.” I mused, toying with the end of the arrow. I pulled it back on the string again.

Lilac sling a backpack over her shoulders. She had barely settled it when Mrs Barclay was grabbing her harshly by the shoulder, dragging her away.

I fired the arrow.

Hamil squeaked.

Mrs Barclay gasped when the arrow pierced her in the back.

Lilac looked up at Mrs Barclay. “You’re-you’re hurting me.”

“Do you see that man?” Mrs Barclay asked, lowering to something  _ sultry. _ “Oh he’s...cute.”

“L-let me go now!” Lilac demanded. She tried to pull Mrs Barclay’s hand off her shoulder.

Mrs Barclay let her go, wandering away in the direction of a man across the park.

Lilac and I let out relieved sighs once Mrs Barclay was far enough. Hamil was hyperventilating beside me. Lilac sniffled.

“I couldn’t make her love you.” I apologized. Pulling out the newly generated arrow, I glared at it. “Why can’t you ever do what I want you too? Why did she like the wrong person?!”

Spreading my wings, I shot into the sky. Hamil squeaked before flying after me.

Landing in a random alley wall, I threw the arrow at a wall.

“Stupid stick!” I insulted. Hamil flew behind me. I went to pick up the arrow I threw. “Hamil keep your eyes on Lilac. The arrow could just be taking its time.”

Hamil meekly saluted me before flying again.

When he was far enough away I let out an annoyed huff. 

“I’m gonna go play  _ ‘misplaced aggression’ _ .”

 

==CR==

 

The arrow hit another brick wall, where I had spray painted a smiling face.

Sandy’s dreamland had come over the town earlier. I paid it little mind, firing at arrows at what I imagined was Mrs Barclay’s face.

So caught in my rage, I barely noticed the figure watching in the shadows. When I did, I kept my focus on firing arrows. They were constantly copying so there was no danger of running out.

‘ _ Seriously I gotta figure out how to make these stop spreading love...or I guess heartbreak was what it spread.’ _

“Hello, sheila.”

Firing an arrow, I turned to face my opponent.

Bunnymund caught it in his paw. It was barely an inch from his face.

“Easter must be wearing you out, Bunny” I taunted. “Nearly lost an eye.”

Bunnymund chuckled at me. He twirled the arrow in his paw. “Hitting an eye isn’t the worst thing you’ve done with these arrows.”

My hand tightened on my bow. Did he think I  _ enjoyed  _ this? That I  _ liked  _ hurting people, hurting children? That their sobs didn’t haunt me all hours of the day? What an  _ asshole _ !

“Come to brag?” I mocked. “Brag about how you- an overgrown litterbug- and your friends- glorified  _ house invaders _ \- are better than me?”

Bunnymund narrowed his eyes, his nose twitching. Suddenly he grinned side. “Oh I’m going to enjoy watching this.”

My wings spread in attention. Something was coming up from behind me. 

“Fellas...” Bunnymund prompted.

Whirling around, I prepared to fight my attacker with the blade on my belt. To my surprise it was a burlap sack was being thrown over my body. It lifted me off my feet into the air.

I yelled when the burlap sack closed. 

“You better let me out!” Kicking the sack, my wings flapping against the side, my hands tried to claw out. 

Bunnymund was laughing outside.

“ _ Durbha wahla.” _

“What was that?!”

_ “Durtal bardla burdlew.” _

“Who’s saying that?!”

“ _ Dwbard urghwetee.” _

_ “Me?”  _ Bunnymund laughed. _ “Not on your nelly. See you back at the pole.” _

“The WHAT?!”

_ “Bwardla arghl.” _

“No wait  _ stop-” _

The bag  _ swooped. _

“AH!”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> New York is AWESOME!!


	4. Initiation

When the sack I was in landed, I groaned in pain.

_ “Oh! She’s here!”  _ A voice cheered.

“Fat man, you will die first!” I shouted.

He laughed. I fought against the bag. What the heck?! Did they use some kind of steel rope to hold it closed?!

There was another few minutes of my fruitless fighting with a bag. Albeit completely stupid and pointless fighting, but I won’t give up just yet. Beside me I heard another loud thud, followed by a groan of pain.

“Who’s there?! Who is that!” I demanded.

_ “He’s here. Now we can have party start!” _

The rope holding my bag shut loosened. I pushed me way out, waving a hand expecting to hit someone’s face.

Instead I was greeted by the sight of  _ the North Pole _ .

My jaw dropped.

“Hey, there they are! Jack Frost and Cupid!” The fat man that had been shouting _ -Santa holy crud that was Santa I was meeting Santa- _ was now waving his arms in an excited greeting.

His arm had waved out towards the two other people in his group. The Tooth Fairy and the Sandman.

“Wow, you gotta be kidding me.” A voice added beside me. 

Before I could see who it was, something poked my face. Shooting up to my feet, my hand lashing out to my sheathed blade, I saw it was only an elf. He was beaming up at me with a dopey grin. While I observed I let myself hover off the ground. That always made me feel better.

A pair of yetis came up behind me. As I flew to the side to defend myself I saw them grab a pale thin boy from another sack. The boy seemed familiar to me. 

“Hey, hey. Whoa, put me down.” He told the yetis. They dropped him on his feet. 

“Who are you?” I asked him.

The big straightened up his hoodie, brushing off yeti fur. “Who are  _ you _ ?”

“I asked first.” My hand tightened on the hilt of my blade.

“I asked  _ second _ .” He tightened the hold on his staff.

There was a tense silence while I sized him up.

“Oh you are Jack Frost.” I taunted. “You are smaller in person. What, is it too cold out?”

Jack narrowed his eyes. “That makes you Cupid?”

“Mmm, smart too. You’re not just a baby face.” I winked at him, loosening my hold on the hilt.

“I hope the yetis treated you well?” North interjected.

“Oh, yeah. I love being shoved in a sack and tossed through a magic portal.” Jack snarked at him, swinging his staff over his shoulder.

North beamed. “Oh, good! That was my idea!” I rolled my eyes. “And Cupid?”

“Shove me in a sack again, fat man.” I warned. “And I will not be happy.”

North laughed. It was the big belly laugh that made me grin, however snarky. “You know Bunny, obviously.”

Bunnymund was leaning against a nearby pillar. He gruffed our direction.

“Obviously.”

“In passing.”

“And the Tooth Fairy?” North prompted.

I opened my mouth to answer. The Tooth Fairy flew up to Jack, fingers reaching for his mouth. “Hello, Jack. I’ve heard a lot about you. And your teeth.”

“My, my what?” Jack stuttered.

“Open up! Are they really as white as they say? Yes!” Tooth squealed. She flew backwards from Jack. My hand covered my mouth, protecting my teeth. “Oh they really do sparkle like freshly fallen snow.” She chirped. Her tiny fairies- which were way less cool than my cherubs-swarmed to Jack’s head. “Girls, pull yourselves together...Let’s not disgrace the uniform. Cupid! You’re-oh.”

My hand was over my mouth.

“I just wanted to see if they were as white as your wings!”

I growled beneath my hand. Tooth flinched back, giggling bashfully.

“And Sandman.” Except the Sandman was sleep floating. North tapped his shoulder. “Sandy! Sandy! Wake up!”

The Sandman snorted as he woke up, landing on the floor with rehearsed ease. He smiled at Jack and I.

“Hey! Ho! Anyone wanna tell me why I’m here?” Jack asked.

“Yeah. I’m not really a fan of being dragged to places.” I advised.

Sandy floated closer to us. He began forming sand pictures above his head. They started off slow before rushing through.

“That’s not really helping. But thanks, little man.” Jack commented.

“There was a man.” I translated. “Or...the silhouette of a man. He was here at the Pole. Something about the moon? I think? And...Jack and me. Somehow we’re...well not  _ involved _ but in the middle of it?” The Guardians were surprised. “Yeah I can read Sandman. Despite the blonde, I’m not an idiot.”

North laughed good naturedly. Bunnymund was snickering, like he doubted that.

“We musta done something really bad to get you four together.” Jack walks away from the group, frosting an elf with a tray of cookies as it marches past, then turns around. “Are we on the naughty list?”

“On naughty list?” North laughed, going serious to glare at Jack. “You hold record. Cupid...you are not off to good start. But no matter. We overlook. Now we are wiping clean the slate.”

“Why? What’s the catch?” I asked, pulling an arrow out of my quiver to twirl around my fingers.

“Ah, good question.” Bunnymund complimented, sneering in disgust in North’s direction.

“How come? I tell you how come!” North cheered loudly. “Because now... _ you are Guardians!” _

There was loud fanfare from behind me. Jumping towards it, I saw the yetis waving torches. The elves were blowing on horns. There was confetti falling from the ceiling. 

Four fairies were flying up to us. Two holding a snowflake necklace, another two holding a heart one. Once it was close enough I grabbed it from their tiny hands. Throwing it on the ground was sad. Their expressions, not the act itself. No way was I wearing paper hearts like one the kids I shot with the arrows.

“This is the best part!” North’s voice carried over the cacophony of loud noises.

The two yetis with torches began rotating them. They walked around Jack and I. In a way that I realized quickly was to herd us towards the middle of the floor. I stayed off the ground, to their displeasure. They waved the torches higher in the air. I had to touch the ground to dodge the flames.

When my feet touched the ground the panic set in. It suddenly felt hard to breath despite not needing air. My wings were sagging on my back, sinking so the tips touched the ground.

All I could think about was the mistakes.

That boy in Ireland.

The girls from Missouri.

That couple in Chicago.

This little girl and a pony.

Mrs Barclay.

_ Lilac. _

_ How sad she looked when Mrs Barclay was taking her away. _

The noise in the room grew. It grew. It grew. _ It grew. _ It grew so loud I could barely tell the noise in my head from the noise in the room. 

There was a loud  _ boom. _ The harsh cold of the room spread to my feet.

It grew too much.

I flew off the ground, flying until I was touching the ceiling. My wings flapped hard to keep me away from any of the flying toys in the Pole, and to avoid hitting others. Silently I called for cherubs. Any cherubs nearby. They would help. They knew what to do. 

From above I could see everything that had happened. Jack had slammed his staff on the ground. It had spread out a violent ice from where we had stood. No wonder I had gotten so cold. The elves and yetis took steps away from Jack. Sandman was looking up at me. His expression was of pity.

“What makes you think I want to be a Guardian?” Jack demanded.

“S-Seconded!” I called down to them.

North-who somewhere in my panic had acquired a book-laughed. “Of course you do!” He turned to the elves. “Music!”

They blew on the trumpets.

I fired an arrow at one. The arrow hit one through his hat. His eyes went cross for just a moment. When they straightened the elf cuddled the trumpet he was holding.

“Stop!” I ordered. “If one more of you plays music, I’ll hit you with TWO arrows!”

The elves stopped. One threw down his trumpet, storming off in a huff.

It became clear they weren’t going to start up again. So I fluttered down towards the ground. Not touching it, I wasn’t ready for that. No just hovering over the ground.

“Look, this is all very flattering, but ah...you don’t want me.” Jack told them. He hopped off the ground, floating to the barristers. “You’re all hard work and deadlines, and I’m snowballs and fun times. I’m not a Guardian.”

“Yeah, that’s exactly what I said!” Bunnymund reminded the Guardians.

“You’re all idiots!” I shouted, flying closer to them. “Us? Guardians?! I can’t protect anything! I can barely watch over-”

Suddenly, a trio of cherubs appeared. They began fluttering around my head, squeaking rapidly.

“Cherubs! Oh I forgot I called you guys!” I cheered. Two of them went to hide in my hair, the other checked my wings. “Mydia! Get your hands off my feathers! Pelie, Seraph, that hurts my head! All three of you  _ stop.” _

The cherubs paused.

“Move  _ away _ .”

They did. Mydia began chittering at me, scolding.

“I know I’m not supposed to touch the ground! It was an accident!” I replied. Mydia chittered again. “Would you stop? I’m trying to have a serious conversation with Guardians.”

The cherubs gasped. They turned to the room, seeing the Guardians and Jack and all the other residents of the North Pole.

Seraph waved, bashfully. Pelie hid in my hair again. Mydia faced their confused stares without shame.

“What are these?” Bunnymund asked, sneering.

Mydia chittered at him- angrily waving her fist.

The cherubs gasped.

“Mydia! Language!” I scolded her. The cherub refused to apologize. I huffed. “These are my cherubs. They go to places I can’t- and Mydia I said to stop!”

She was pulling at my hair. She squeaked to get my attention, waving to my arrows. ‘ _ Guess Hamil had talked to her.’ _ “Squeak squeaker squeakin’ squeak!”

The cherubs gasped. One fainted.

“And I literally just killed Seraph.” I huffed. “See? I don’t have  _ time _ to be a Guardian. I’ve got to figure out all of these...weirdos.”

“You get _ cherubs _ ?!” Jack yelled in aggression. “Seriously? What the- the Moon gave you Cherubs and I get _ nothing _ ?”

“Jack, Cupid...I don’t think you understand what it is we do.” Tooth flew over towards the globe. I flew away from them, instead hovering in mid air by the globe. The cherubs followed me. “Each of those lights is a child.”

“A child who believes. And good or bad, naughty or nice, we protect them.” North added on. “Tooth...fingers out of mouth.”

Turning over towards Jack, I saw she was indeed examining Jack’s teeth.

Tooth pulled away when she saw everyone’s eyes on her. “Oh, sorry. They’re beautiful.” She complimented Jack.

“Okay, no more wishy-washy! Pitch is out there doing who knows what!” North reminded the Guardians.

“You mean the Boogeyman?” Jack scoffed.

“Pitch Black?  _ That’s _ the guy?” I flew to Jack’s side, staying hovering above the ground. Pelie took nest in my hair, Mydia was trying to pull an arrow from the quiver. Seraph was still passed out on the ground.

“Yes! When Pitch threatens us, he threatens them as well.” He pointed to the globe. I looked as well, seeing where Lilac lived and where her light must be.

_ Pitch threatens us, he threatens them _

_ Threatening her _

_...why does that make me want to put my blade in his face? _

“All the more reason to pick others who are more qualified!” Jack argued.

“ _ Pick _ ?  _ You _ think _ we _ pick?” North chuckled. “No, you were  _ both chosen  _ like we were all chosen. By Man in Moon.” He waved to a window where we could see the Moon.

I gawked at the Moon. “Huh?”

“What?”

“Last night, Cupid, Jack. He chose the two of you.” Tooth explained.

“Maybe.” Bunnymund commented.

“The Man in the Moon, he talks to you?” Jack asked in shock.

Flying to the bannister, I sat on the edge.

_ Pitch threatens Lilac. _

_ Pitch _

_ Threatens _

_ Lilac. _

“You see, you can not say no. It is destiny.” North told us.

“But why, _ why  _ wouldn’t he tell me that himself?” Jack asked.

_ He was going to feel  _ pain _ for that. _

Pelie was muttering in my ear.

“After 300 years _ this  _ is his answer? To spend eternity like you guys cooped up in some, some hideout thinking of, of new ways to bribe kids? No no, that’s not for me.” Jack turned to the Guardians. “No offense.”

Bunnymund was stunned. “How is that not offensive?” He asked. “You know what I think? I think we just dodged a bullet. I mean, what do these clowns know about bringing joy to children anyway?”

“Uhh, you ever hear of a snow day? I know it’s no hard-boiled egg, but kids like what I do.” Jack countered.

“But none of ‘em believe in you. Do they?” Bunnymund taunted. “You see, you’re invisible, mate. It’s like you don’t even exist.”

“Bunny! Enough!” Tooth snapped.

“Back off, less funny Roger Rabbit.” I warned him.

Flying to his face, I picked up Seraph. He was warm in my palm so he was still alive. Not that I was worried. Seraph was an a fighter- an annoying fighter though.

Once I made it to Bunnymund’s face, I stared down his nose into his eyes.

“I’m not afraid to fight you.”

Bunnymund snorted. “Easy for you to say. What makes you so special, eh? Why did  _ you _ get cherubs and Believers even though you’re young? Even though you hurt every kid you fire those twigs at?”

“Wanna see what these  _ twigs _ will do to your face?” I growled.

“No, the kangaroo’s right.” Jack 

“The, the what-what’d you call me?” Bunnymund pushed me aside. The cherubs are chittered angrily. Mydia waved her fist in his direction. “I am  _ not _ a kangaroo, mate.” He stomped up to Jack’s face.

Jack stomped right back. “Oh. And this whole time I thought you were. If you’re not a kangaroo, what are you?”

“I’m a bunny. The  _ Easter _ Bunny. People  _ believe  _ in me.” Bunnymund boasted.

I let an arrow loose before anyone could blink.

Mydia flew up in front of me, pushing the arrow as it approached Bunnymund’s face.

“Mydia!” I snapped. “I told you all- don’t block my arrows! You know better than this!”

Mydia held my arrow, which was a miracle of itself. She shook her head firmly at me.

I growled. As I reached up for another arrow, Pelie grabbed my ear while Seraph poked my hand.

“Jack. Cupid.” North interjected. “Walk with me.”


	5. What Is My Center?

North walked us to the elevator. He was showing us the factory for the North Pole. The Cherubs I had told to go back to what they were doing before I called them. They didn’t listen, of course, and instead decided to fly around behind me. 

Gotta admit the place didn’t look half bad. Sure it was rustic, but a charming familiar rustic. Reminded me of a cabin in the woods without all the dying.

“It’s nothing personal, North. What you all do, it’s just, it’s not my thing.” Jack excused.

I nervously flew off the ground. All the while trying to float down enough so I kept up with the elevator. Once they reached the ground I happily flew out. 

“Man in Moon says it is your thing. We will see!” North argued. I kept up behind him, ignoring the chaos around us.

“Slow down, wouldja? I’ve been trying to bust in here for years, I want a good look.” Jack requested.

“What do you mean, _ ‘bust in’? _ ” North pointed out.

“Oh, don’t worry, I never got past the yetis.” Jack assured.

“It’s not that hard.” I mused, flying in a loop around North’s head. He glared up at me. The Yetis too. “I mean- oh  _ yeah. _ It was... _ so, so _ hard breaking- I mean, yeah. A real- difficulty- I’ll just shut up.”

A yeti growled beside us.

“Hey Phil.” Jack and I greeted.

Phil huffed in our directions.

“Keep up, Jack and Cupid! Keep up!” North marched ahead.

So I flew to catch up with him. There was a lot going on in the factory. Too much for me to really care about. A basic summary was that the Yetis were building all of the toys.

“Whoa!” I flew down lower to Jack. He was still staring at the factory in awe. “I always thought the elves made the toys.” He pointed out.

“We just let them believe that.” North whispered.

After seeing how stupid these elves were, I don’t blame him.

“Very nice!” North praised a group of nearby elves. He really shouldn’t, they’re being peak stupid right now. One was wrapped up in Christmas light! “Keep up good work!”

The elves turned on the lights. The elf clinched, before rotating on the record players.

“I don’t like it. Paint it red.” North instructed a yeti.

After seeing all the toys already painted blue, I felt bad for him.

Not enough to help obviously.

“Step it up, everybody.” North called out to the factory.

He showed us the way into his office. 

Honestly, compared to the rest of the factory, his office was tiny and dull. There were some ice sculptures that looked cool. He had blueprints for a few hanging up on the walls.

North walked further in, dusting off his hands. He grabbed a plate of cake from an elf. “Fruit cake?” He offered.

“Ah, no, thanks.” Jack declined.

“Cupid?” North offered.

I glanced at the cake. “Is it the good kind?” I asked.

North beamed. “This is North Pole, of course it is good kind!”

“Not if that elf made it.” I pointed out.

North blinked. “Good point.” He flung The plate away. It crashed (conveniently) inside the trash can. “Now we get down to tacks of brass!”

“Tacks of brass?” Jack whispered.

North cracked his knuckles.

Okay now I’m concerned.

The door behind us slammed shut. The lock clicked with a freaking  _ echo. _

I jumped back in mid air.

North marched up to our faces. I was so startled I nearly stood on the ground. 

“Who are you, Jack Frost?” He narrowed his eyes on me. “And you, Cupid? Who are you? What are your centers?” He poked us in the chests.

“Gah!” I yelped. “My center is soft and squishable! Don’t do that!”

“M-My center?” Jack asked.

“If Man in Moon chose you _ both _ to be Guardians, you must have something very special inside.” North stated. He stroked his beard in thought. He was giving us odd looks. 

He walked away.

I let myself exhale. That entire exchange made me feel like an ant under a boot.

_ ‘An ant has no quarrel with a boot.’ _

_ ‘...why does that make me want to laugh at the joke but cry for...for someone?’ _

North walked over with a Russian Nesting doll. He held it up for us. “Here. This is how you see me, no? Very big, intimidating. But if you get to know me a little-” He handed the doll to Jack. “Well, go on.”

Jack raised an eyebrow at North. He turned to me, seeing a matching look of confusion on my face. So seeing that we might as well play along with the insanity, he opened the doll. The next face was what most people expected Santa to be like- happy and jolly.

“You are downright jolly.” Jack deadpanned.

“Ah, but not just jolly...” North encouraged us to open the doll again. Jack did so. “I am also mysterious. And fearless. And caring. And at my center...”

Jack opened the last doll. The doll was falling out of the smaller doll so I grabbed it.

“You’re a baby?” I slowly guessed. Jack rubbed at his foreheads frustration.

“Look closer. What do you see?” North encouraged.

“You have big eyes?” Jack guessed.

“Yes!” North stretched out his eyes to match the doll. When he finished doing that he grabbed Jack and I by the shoulder. He smushed us together, so that we could see his big eyes. “Big eyes. Very big. Because they are full! Of wonder! _ That _ is my center.” He let us go, walking further into his office to show off all the toys he had inside. “It is what I was born with. Eyes that have always seen the wonder in _ everything _ !”

He pointed at a flying airplane. It flew by the tree as the lights lit up. “Eyes that see lights in the trees, and magic in the air!”

North guided us to follow the office. We showed us his factory, and for a second it was like I could see it the way he did.

“This wonder is what I put into the world, and what I protect in children.” North explained. “It is what makes me a Guardian.” He turned to us, the question on his face again. “It is my center. What is yours?”

My expression fell.

“I don’t know.” We both answered.

I looked down at the ground, fluttering over to the bannister. Sitting down I thought about the past three months.

What was I guarding that Manny saw? The obvious answers would be to do with hearts, except I break them more than anything.

But North said he protected because that’s what he saw in the world. What do I see in it?

_ ‘Who am I?’ _

Something flew past the window in North’s office. I looked up in time to see something green.

Bunnymund and Sandy dashed up to us.

“We have a problem, mate!” Bunnymund hopped up to North. “Trouble at the Tooth Palace.”

My hands tightened to fists. My wings extended, while my legs took a fighting stance on the bannister.

_ ‘CHERUBS! ALL OF YOU! TO THE TOOTH PALACE! PROTECT THE FAIRIES!’ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was supposed to be an update for Halloween. Whoopsie.


	6. Pitch Black

I teleported to the Tooth Palace. 

When I arrived, it was already a half lost fight. Giant black horses were attacking. They flew around the Tooth Palace, grabbing any fairies in their muzzles.

Pulling out my blade, I flew at the horses. The fairies were screeching in fear. 

I dove into the fight.

Saw a horse flying past me.

I sliced my blade along it’s neck. 

The creature barely flinched, flying around to chase more fairies. 

The only sign it had even been cut was the black dust on the blade.

Now _ that _ just pissed me off.

The cherubs started to arrive as I attacked the second horse. This time I wouldn’t stop until the horse was dead. After another minute of fruitless attacks I pulled out an arrow. I slashed it’s neck, causing the horse to collapse in a pile of dust. It revealed the fairies and...canisters?

I knelt down to pick one up. Fairies flew up to me, cheering at the sight of the canister. They were cheering.

Two cherubs came up to my shoulder. 

“Azeroth, Germael. Keep these fairies and the canister safe.” I instructed. Rising to my feet, I searched for my next target. “Don’t let them out of your sight.”

The cherubs saluted me.

I heard more fairies screaming. I flew after the horse with the loudest screams. The thing was fast so I fired an arrow after it. The horse dispersed again. The fairies all cheered as they were set free.

Were these horses... _ eating _ the fairies? And why these canisters?

Slashing the throats of horses should’ve made me feel bad. Right? That’s what emotion it was supposed to cause right? 

Except what if they were the problem? How was I supposed to feel then?

Another horse screamed. I noticed there were less of them, and I knew it wasn’t because of my attacks. I flew after another horse- seeing it attacking the fairies I saved moments ago.

Only by the time I arrived they were trying to swallow my own cherubs.

“Don’t you DARE!” I yelled. 

The horse screeched at me. I fired an arrow at it. The horse dodged. I screamed in annoyance when I realized it had taken Azeroth and Germael.

Screaming in rage, I fired arrows at any horse I saw. Except they were flying away. I ordered the cherubs left to fly after them. 

Soon there was only one left. I flew after it in a rage.

That’s when Santa’s sleigh came up behind me.

North hopped up. He chopped at the horse, dissolving it. 

“What the heck?! Why did your sword work and not mine?” I asked, landing on the sleigh beside Jack.

“Manny’s sword!” North explained. “Your’s is less so!”

I ground my teeth.

“They’re stealing the teeth!” Bunnymund held up the canister.

“There’s  _ teeth _ in those things?” I grimaced in disgust. Now I was creeped out they were being taken. “What kind of sicko takes teeth?”

“Jack, look out!” North warned.

Jack had the reins on this thing?!

How were these idiots not already dead?

We had a near miss with a pillar. I gripped the front of the sleigh to avoid- hold on was I trying not to fall out when I could fly?

When Jack had the thing righted, I let myself fall out of the sleigh.

“Cupid!” Jack called out.

I flew up, flapping my wings rapidly in a reminder that I was fine.

Jack groaned, running a hand over his face. “Right. Flying.”

“Tooth! Are you alright?” North hopped off the sleigh towards the fairy.

I flew up to her.

Tooth was flying around, in a rushed panic.

“They, they took my fairies! And the teeth! All of them! Everything is gone! Everything.” Tooth panicked.

The other Guardians rushed to her side, in a show of support.

A fairy came up off of Jack’s shoulder. The fairy flew up towards Tooth.

“Oh thank goodness! One of you is alright!” Tooth cheered.

I bit my lip, looking out around the Tooth Palace.

“Cupid?” Jack asked.

“My cherubs. They were here to help.” I revealed. “A lot of them were taken. I told them to watch the fairies and the...apparent teeth canisters.”

“They took your fairies too?” Jack asked.

I nodded. “Think all of them.”

A squeak came from my hair.

“Pelie?!” I gasped. “Were you in my hair the whole time?”

Pelie chittered- embarrassed.

“You little-” I huffed. “Coward.”

Still, I grabbed the cherub, holding it close. Peilie snuggled against my chest. The affection wasn’t always wanted. Right now it was greatly appreciated.

“I have to say, this is very, very exciting.”

I pushed Pelie back in my hair. He squeaked in fear. I pulled out another arrow, searching for the source of the voice.

He was spotted by Pelie at the top of the spiral. I aimed the arrow. Pelie advised against it. I ignored him. Chain of command, and al that.

“The Big Four, all in one place. I’m a little star-struck.” The man I assumed to be Pitch, remarked. “Did you like my show on the globe, North? Got you all together, didn’t I?”

North grunted in annoyance. Realizing he and the other Guardians had been played.

“Pitch, you have got thirty seconds to return my fairies!” Tooth warned. She flew up to him. He vanished by the time she arrived. 

“Or what?” Pitch asked. I followed his voice to another spiral top. “You’ll stick a quarter under my pillow?”

“I’ll put a quarter of my arrows in his head.” I grumbled. Pelie flicked my ear. “Stop it.”

“Why are you doing this?” North demanded.

“Maybe I want what _ you  _ have. To be believed in.” Pitch sneered.

Jack tensed beside me. I don’t know why. Being Believed-In wasn’t that great.

“Maybe I’m tired of hiding under beds.” Pitch ranted.

“Maybe that’s where you belong.” Bunnymund scoffed.

Pitch rolled his eyes while appearing beneath the ledge. “Ah, go suck an egg, rabbit.” He deadpanned.

Bunnymund tried going after the Boogeyman. Pitch vanished before Bunnymund could catch a sight.

“Hang on, is that...Jack Frost? And Cupid?” Pitch asked. He laughed when I jumped around. He was hiding in the shadows. Pelie was shivering in my hair. “Since when are you all so chummy?”

“We’re not.” Jack replied.

“Oh good. A neutral party. Then I’m going to ignore you. But, you must be used to that by now.” Pitch remarked.

“I’m not neutral.” I added. “Always thought I was more  _ ‘chaotic good’ _ .”

Pitch laughed. “Cupid. One of the Man in the Moon’s newest  _ experiments _ .” Pitch vanished in the shadows.

I moved the aim an arrow behind me before I even knew he was standing there.

He dodged it. “And he gave you so many clever toys. Magical golden arrows, your own army of cherubs. You have  _ Believers _ . How old were you again?”

“Old enough.” I let loose another arrow.

Pitch vanished in the shadows. His laugh echoed.

“Give me back my cherubs!” I demanded.

“Pitch! You shadow sneaking rat-bag! Come here!” Bunnymund yelled.

The rabbit launched himself towards the Boogeyman. Pitch vanished again. That trick was a good one, I should learn it. 

He must’ve reappeared because Tooth flew up after it, screaming like a Berserker and waving around Bunnymund’s boomerang.

_ ‘Crazy fairy.’ _ I praised her.

Except a Nightmare stepped in between them.

_ Why did a Nightmare make me want to look at the moon? _

_ Why did that make me want to sing about ponies? _

_ Why did the ponies remind me of Lilac? _

Pitch stood between Tooth and the Nightmare. He soothed it, while Tooth hovered away to a safe distance. “Whoa! Hey, easy, girl. Easy.” Pitch sneered at Sandy. “Look familiar, Sandman? Took me a while to perfect this little trick. Turning dreams into Nightmares.” Pitch turned to the other three. My hand clenched on my bow. “Don’t be nervous, it only riles them up more. They smell fear you know.”

“What fear? Of you!?” Bunnymund scoffed. “No one’s been afraid of you since the Dark Ages!”

Pitch glared sharply. My hand moved to grab an arrow before his sneer changed to a fond smile. “Oh, the Dark Ages. Everyone frightened. Miserable. Such happy times for me. Oh, the power I wielded!” Pitch sneered at us. “But then the Man in the Moon chose you to replace my fear with your wonder and light! Lifting their hearts! And giving them hope! Meanwhile, everyone wrote me off as just a bad dream! _ ‘Oh, there’s nothing to be afraid of! There’s no such thing as the Boogeyman!’” _ He leaned forward. “Well that’s all about to change.”

There was a loud crack. I jumped back, while Pelie and Baby Tooth squeaked in fear. The spiral tops and columns all began...to chip away...falling like dust.

Tooth gasped.

“Oh look, it’s happening already.” Pitch delighted.

“What is?” Jack asked.

“It’s fading away.” I realized. “But...why?”

“Children are waking up and realizing the Tooth Fairy never came.” Pitch answered. “I mean such a little thing, but to a  _ child _ ...”

Tooth lowered to the ground, her wings drooping.

“What’s going on?” Jack asked.

“They, they don’t believe in me anymore.” Tooth realized.

“Didn’t they tell you, Jack, Cupid? It’s great being a Guardian-but there’s a _ catch _ .” Pitch began. I turned to look at the Guardians. They were fuming up at Pitch. “If enough kids stop believing, everything your friends protect-wonder, hopes and dreams-it all goes away. And little by little, so do they.”

I pulled out an arrow.

“No Christmas, or Easter, or little fairies that come in the night. There will be nothing. But fear and darkness and me! It’s  _ your _ turn not to be believed in!”

I fired the arrow.

Pitch ducked to avoid it. He hopped on the back of the Nightmare while I pulled another one.

The six of us chased after Pitch. He glanced back over his shoulder a lot. The horse was clearly leading the escape. I aimed my arrows at the horse’s head, while Bunnymund threw egg bombs at Pitch.

The dust it created made it impossible to spot where they were. That was aggravating.

When we made it the ground, Pitch was gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Election Day to my American readers! If you’re not, then just say I’m using the holiday as an excuse for the late update!


	7. Honorary Tooth Collector

At North’s statement, Tooth deflated to the ground.

I went to her side. Bracing myself, I knelt on the ground. One of my wings stretched over her back in comfort. Pitch had taken  _ my cherubs _ with her fairies and teeth. I could empathize.

_ So I ignored the racing of my heart.  _

_ The fear in my veins. _

_ The  _ anger _ in every ghost of a memory.  _

“I’m sorry, about the fairies.” Jack’s voice came over my mental fog. “And the cherubs.”

“You should’ve seen them. They put up such a fight.” She turned to me. Baby Tooth was curled against Tooth’s neck. Pelie cuddled my cheek. It was making me feel overwhelmed. “Your cherubs did too. I can’t thank you enough for that.”

“Of course they did. My cherubs are warriors.” I ended my sort-of hug with Tooth.

Getting off the ground I flew up towards the mural. Pelie came after me. He was squeaking words of comfort. Ignoring him was easier than telling him to leave me alone.

“Why would Pitch take the teeth?” Jack asked, confused.

“It’s not the teeth he wanted. It’s the memories inside them.” Tooth explained.

A beat of silence passed.

“What do you mean?” Jack breathed out.

“That’s why we collect the teeth, Jack.” She showed him the mural. I moved out of the way. “They hold the most important memories of childhood.”

Pelie sighed happily next to me, admiring the mural. Rolling my eyes in mock announce, I flicked his head with my fingers. Pelie complained weakly. He went back to admiring the mural.

“My fairies and I watch over them and when someone needs to remember what’s important, we help them.” Tooth revealed. “We had everyone’s here. Yours too.” Tooth explained.

“My memories?”

“My whatits?” I gawked at the fairy.

“From when you were young. Before you became Jack Frost and Cupid.” Tooth said plainly, nonchalant, like my entire life wasn’t turned on it’s head by what she saying.

“But, I wasn’t anyone before I was Jack Frost.” Jack replied, confused.

Tooth tilted her head in confusion.  “Of course you were. We were all someone before we were chosen.”

“What?” Jack gawked. 

“You know who I was before?” I asked, flying up to Tooth.

The fairy was still confused at Jack’s remark. “I don’t know- personally. I can’t look at the memories, only the children who they belong to can do that.”

“But you had my  _ memories _ of who I was?” I pressed.

_ Could I really have been so close to my past? _

_ Would they say why Charleston was so important? _

_ Would they tell me if I had a home, that didn’t bring people pain all the time? _

_ Would Lilac be in it? _

“You should’ve seen Bunny.” North snorted. 

“Hey, I told you never to mention that!” Bunnymund warned.

“That night at the pond...I just, why I assumed..” Jack mumbled to himself. He turned to Tooth. “Are you saying, are you saying I had a life before that? With a home? And a  _ family _ ?”

Tooth realized what we were saying. “You really don’t remember?” She looked at me. “Anything?”

My jaw dropped. Pelie squeaked in concern for me.

“All these years, and the answers were right here. If I find my memories, then I’ll know why I’m here.” Jack realized in a rush of awe. “You have to show me.”

“Me too.” I demanded. Clarity to me in a snap. “Oh no...”

“I...I can’t, Jack. Pitch has them.” Tooth reminded him.

“Then we have to get them back!”

Tooth gasped suddenly. She looked down. Following her sight, I saw feathers falling down to the ground. “Oh no!”

Pelie gasped. When I looked to him, I saw the mural crumbling.

“The children. We’re too late.” Tooth realized, heartbroken.

“No! No! No such thing as too late!” North waved his swords around to get his attention. Well he definitely has my attention now. “Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. Idea! HAHA!” He pointed the swords at us. “We will collect the teeth!”

“What?” Tooth gawked.

“We get teeth! Children keep believing in you!” North explained.

“We’re talking seven continents! Millions of kids!” Tooth argued.

“Give me break! You know how many toys I deliver in one night?” North laughed.

Bunnymund seemed to sign up, hopping up. “And eggs I hide in one day?”

Sandy signed on too.

“And Jack, Cupid, if you help us, we will get you your memories.” North promised.

I bit my lip, considering their offer. 

Bunnymund was less eager to help now.

Jack and I exchanged a look.

“We’re in.”

 

==CR==

 

After Tooth gave us a quick instruction of which houses had the teeth, some kind of contest began between the boys.

Well that didn’t matter to me. Sure that I was going faster from house to house. Or that Pelie was on my team so any teeth he collected should instantly be added to my score. 

Which is exactly what I would say when any of them protested my loot.

Tooth gave me some coins to use as gifts. Apparently the Tooth Palace had a magic coin that would change to whatever currency the child’s home used. American would get a quarter, Japanese would get some yen, British ones would get five pence, a good system really. 

The boys were shouting loudly as I slipped to houses. Many times they didn’t notice what had happened until I was waving smugly at them from down the block.

I finished one house in time to see Tooth flying into a billboard.

“Ow!” Tooth cried out.

Jack and I came up to her side.

“Ah, you okay?” Jackasked.

Myself, between laughs, said “That was a major fail.”

“Fine...sorry, it’s been a really long time since I’ve been out in the field.”

“Long enough to forget how to fly?” I questioned, looking up at the toothpaste billboard. Fitting.

“Yeah. How long is a long time?” Jack asked.

“Ah, four hundred forty years...give or take.” Tooth shrugged. She snapped her head to the side, gasping in delight. She flew off towards it.

“Hmm.” Jack hummed. He turned to me. He spotted my heavy sack of teeth. “You got a lot of teeth.”

I grinned, tongue on my teeth as I did. “Course I did. While the boys play, the girls will slay.” I teleported to my next house. Doing that I missed Jack’s shout of  _ ‘we’ll see about that!’ _

 

==CR==

 

There was a lot of competition after that. I’m not gonna be smug and a liar...I was winning. I didn’t  _ need _ to be smug or a liar.

Four times I caught one of the boys trying to take my teeth. Each time I distracted them, while Pelie collected the tooth and left the coin. Thus winning the tooth for my pot.

My memories didn’t even need to exist to tell me I was a mad genius in the past. 

It was around hour three that Tooth gathered us at one rooftop. Everyone was holding up their bags of collected teeth.

“Wow! You guys collect teeth and leave gifts as fast as my fairies.” Tooth praised them.

I continued to float proudly above them. The boys-however-turned sheepish.

“You guys  _ have _ been leaving gifts, right?”

I laughed at their faces.

“Oh you boys are going  _ down!” _ I bragged, flying off to another house.

Not only were they delayed by giving gifts to all the kids, they had to  _ get  _ those gifts  _ first _ .

I was  _ so  _ winning this!

Huh?

Oh yeah.

_ Pelie _ and I were so winning this.

 

==CR==

 

As it came close to finishing, I was getting some teeth near where Lilac lived. There were a handful.

I stopped by Lilac’s home. She was sleeping in her bed. That was a good sign. There was no Hamil in sight. He must’ve come to the Tooth Palace. With so much going on there, I hadn’t even noticed he was with them. There had been no one watching Lilac...making sure she was safe from...everything...

Sandy’s sand was floating around her head. I flew closer to see what it was that she was dreaming. Was it good?

A dragon was flying in her dreams. There was a unicorn on its back, and a pegasus flying in circles around the dragon.

I tilted my head.

_ ‘Maybe when I get my memories back, these will make sense.’ _ I hoped.  _ ‘Maybe...’ _


	8. That Time We Accidentally Told Jamie

I found Jack and Tooth together, still collecting teeth.

The other Guardians were there too. They were all holding up their bags of teeth.

“Oh I see how it is.” Bunnymund was complaining. “All working together to make sure the rabbit gets last place.”

“SHHHHHHHHH!” North hissed.

“You think I need help to beat a bunny? Check it out, Peter Cottontail.” Jack held up a sack.

“You call that a bag of choppers?” Bunnymund scoffed. He pulled out a larger sack of teeth. “Now that’s a bag of choppers.”

“Gentlemen! Gentlemen! This is about Tooth. It’s not a competition! But if it was.” He held out the sack he must use to delivery gifts. “I win.”

“Check again, fat man.” I boasted.

The boys all turned to me, as I dropped my sack to the ground. It was bigger than North himself.

They all dropped their jaws.

“That is- that is-” Bunnymund waved his hands in annoyance towards the sack.

I held up my fist. Pelie headbutted it. “Me, beating all of you with a bow.” I gloated.

North made a loud shout of protest. When he finished, he had a light shining on him.

My eyes widened. Looking to the bed I saw the boy holding up the flashlight.

“Oh no...”

I face palmed.

“Santa Claus? The Easter Bunny?...Sandman...The Tooth Fairy! I knew you’d come!” The boy cheered.

“Surprise!” Tooth cheered, awkwardly. “We came!”

“He can see us?” Jack asked.

The boy was moving the flashlight between the four of them. I stepped closer, clicking my fingers. The boy didn’t turn his head.

Pelie whimpered beside me.

“Most of us.” Bunnymund pointed out.

The boy shined the light Jack’s direction, which was the only empty spot in the Guardians. Seems that while some kids believed in me, it wasn’t enough for every kid to see me.

Which didn’t...disappoint me. More it just...ached.

_ I didn’t need to be believed in _

_ I don’t  _ want  _ to be believed in _

_ Cause when kids and people believe in you... _

My mind flashed an image of Lilac, with Mrs Barclay walking away from her.

_ You let them down _

“Shhh! You guys, he’s still awake.” Tooth reprimanded.

“Sandy! Knock him out!” Bunnymund suggested.

“Huh?” The boy asked.

Sandy cracked his fists.

“Oh Author. This is why Pitch is winning.” I groaned, putting my hands on my hips.

Bunnymund whacked Sandy on the shoulder. “With the Dreamsand, ya gumbies.” 

Sandy made an ‘oh’ face.

Then, the boy’s dog woke up. She growled in Bunnymund’s direction. I hovered behind him, grinning widely.

“No, stop that’s the Easter Bunny. What are you doing, Abbey? Down!” The boy instructed.

“Alright, nobody panic.” Bunnymund reassured us, staring down his snout at the dog.

“But that’s a um, that’s a greyhound.” Jack pointed out, gleeful. “Do you know what greyhounds do to rabbits?”

“I do.” I commented right into Bunnymund’s ear. “It’s not pretty.”

“I think it’s a pretty safe bet he’s never met a rabbit like me-” Bunnymund boasted. Sandy formed a dream sandball. Over Bunnymund’s shoulder I saw Jack inching towards the boy’s alarm clock. “Six foot one, nerves of steel, master of tai-chi and the ancient art of-”

Jack bopped the clock.

I immediately flew up to the ceiling, lying flat to avoid the chaos.

“Crikey.” Bunnymund swore as Abbey leapt at him.

The rabbit bounced away from the dog. I was laughing on the ceiling.

“Stop! Sit!” The boy instructed at the dog, who ignored those orders. “Down girl, down!”

I laughed harder. Jack laughed too.

It was pandemonium on the floor. Sandy accidentally tossed the sandball, bouncing it off the walls. Tooth was trying to stop the alarm clock. North was laughing at the whole scene, while also trying to stop this mayhem.

Until finally the sandball whacked Tooth in the face, and Baby Tooth by close distance. The two fairies fell to the floor to sleep. 

I laughed so hard as the sandball got Bunnymund. That was just too  _ great _ . It got the dog before Abbey could bite him. Pelie gasped, flying to help just as the ball whooshed by. As my cherub fell onto the bed I laughed hard.

Yeah I cared about them and didn’t want them hurt

But he  _ bounced _ ...and it was  _ adorable. _ And he just looked so  _ stupid _ , rushing to help the others.

It got North before dissolving. “Candy canes...” He plopped down on the boy’s bed, sending the boy flying through the air.

The boy laughed all the way to Sandy’s arms.

I floated down from my spot, laughing so hard I had to clutch my stomach. Seeing dancing carrots around Bunnymund’s head was the best.

“Whoops...” Jack shrugged.

“Don’t- don’t apologize!” I laughed. “This was amazing. The best minute of my life. Thank you!”

Jack let out a laughing sigh. “Oh, I really wish I had a camera right now.”

Sandy gave us both a scolding look. The seriousness of it was ruined by his grin.

And  _ that  _ was ruined by a look of pure  _ terror _ . He was staring out the window.

I followed his eyeline. Sure enough a Nightmare stood outside.

The Nightmare was spooked. It kicked into gear. It ran on air, away from the boy’s room.

Jack hopped up in air. I flew out the window. 

“Move it boys!” I instructed.

“Sandy, c’mon! We can find Pitch.” Jack called behind me.

I flew in air, just long to see where the horse was flying. Without waiting for Jack or Sandy I dashed towards it. 

_ Because that horse followed Pitch _

_ Pitch had my cherubs _

_ I wouldn’t let him take my last _

 

==CR==

 

Across the country, a Nightmare was poking at Lilac Barclay’s window.

She slept on as it creeped in her room. The dream of a unicorn and a pegasus and a dragon, all happily dancing around each other.

The Nightmare touched it’s muzzle to her dreamsand.

The gold changed to black. The pegasus in Lilac’s dream fell to the ground. The unicorn and dragon rushed to her side, except the pegasus stood up as a Nightmare sandman. The sandman rushed at the unicorn, who faded into the black sand. 

Lilac woke up before the sand could reach the dragon. 

She sobbed in the dark cold of the night. She curled against her pillow, trying to ignore her dream and keep her sobs soft enough that no one would hear her.

The Nightmare left, taking the newly formed Nightmare pegasus with it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this was late. Had a Depression day. Happy Thanksgiving y’all!


	9. Pitch Fight

Chasing after Nightmares was my new favorite hobby.

Two more Nightmares appeared as I chased. Jack went after one, and I have to assume Sandy had the third.

Knocking my arrows, I fired at the flying Nightmare horse. It dodged the golden arrow. In a flash I had three docked and fired. 

The Nightmare pegasus was  _ mocking me _ at this point.

With a ferocious growl I flew harder at it.

The horse dodged a spin kick I gave. When it tried to buck me in the face with it’s back hooves, I flew beneath it. Wrapping my arms against the underbelly seemed the best bet the defeat it.

Of course, it noticed me on it’s stomach. The Nightmare tried to fling me off by bucking like a bull.

Instead I used one arm to grab an arrow, stabbing it into the horse’s chest where I had to guess it’s heart would be.

The horse neighed loudly in agony. It crashed on a rooftop, with myself as the landing pad.

I groaned in pain- in my back and at the return of emotions.

The Nightmare poofed into dream sand, descending to cover my face. There was a loud bang at my side, I ignored it in favor of the ash now in my mouth.

“HAAAH! I got it!” Came Jack’s voice. As I pushed myself to the air, hacking up sand, he flew up to the roof. “Sandy! Sandy, did you see that?! Cupid look at what I did! Look at this thing!”

Coughing out the last of the sand while also wiping it off my dress, I saw what Jack had done. The Nightmare he had been chasing was stuck to the roof. The idea of black ice popped up in my head. It made the most sense honestly.

“Cupid?!” Jack prompted in excitement.

I smirked at him. “Cool.”

Jack laughed in delight. He poked the frozen sand with his staff.

“Cupid? Frost?”

Jack whirled around, staff at the ready.

My arrow was just as ready.

The two of us attacked the foe on both sides. Pitch merely stepped back to fade into the shadows.

_ ‘You know, that trick is really annoying.’ _

“You know, for ‘neutral parties’ you spend an awful lot of time with those weirdos.” Pitch remarked, fading in from the shadows.

“It’s never my problem- that’s why I do it!” I shouted at him.

“This isn’t your fight, Jack, nor your’s Cupid.” Pitch reminded. He appeared on the roof across from us.

“You made it my fight when you stole those teeth.” Jack told him.

“Teeth? Why do you care about the teeth?” Pitch asked with genuine confusion. “What about you, Cupid? What have I done to offend  _ you _ ?”

_ Lilac _

I fired another arrow at him. Pitch caught it one handed. The distraction gave Sandy time to sneak up on him.

Pitch jumped back like a frightened squirrel when he saw Sandy at his side.

Jack and I chuckled like the teenagers we were.

The Nightmare King laughed to cover up the embarrassment.  “Now this is who I’m looking for-” Sandy lashed out dreamsand whips. Pitch dodged the many attempts like a floundering fish. It made me laugh so hard I spun in circles.

Pitch came at Sandy with a Nightmare sand scythe. Sandy smacked it away like it was nothing.

Then something happened that I hope I remember forever. Sandy’s dreamsand whip wrapped around Pitch’s leg. He threw around the Boogeyman around the roof, smacking him into walls and the floor before throwing him in the sky. Pitch landed on the street below, face down and groaning in pain.

Jack and I went to Sandy’s side. The Sandman was grinning humbly.

“Remind me not to get on your bad side.” Jack remarked.

“We’re not worthy.” I replied, hand over my chest. At Sandy’s side I bent the knee.

Sandy just smiled at us, shaking his head in amusement.

The three of us floated to the ground.

Pitch tried to back away from the Sandman. “Okay, easy! You can’t blame me for  trying, Sandy. You don’t know what it’s like to be weak and hated.” Pitch spluttered in his begging. “It was stupid of me to mess with your dreams. So I’ll tell you what-” His pitying voice took on a sinister tone. He rose up to his feet while sneering down his nose at us. “You can have ‘em back!”

Nightmares came from every direction at that. From storm drains and gas station alleys and the other rooftops.

“You take the ones on the left, Cupid takes the middle, and I’ll take the ones on the right?” Jack suggested.

“Oooh good idea.” I agreed, pulling my dagger out and dancing it between my fingers. In my other hand I held an arrow. With so many targets it would be stupid to waste time reloading the bow instead of taking as many down as I could.

Pitch trotted up to his on a Nightmare. He sneered arrogantly.

“Boo!”

At his command, the horses charged.

They stopped at the sound of a sleigh bell.

I let out a sound of relief. That is until the sleigh flew too close to a building. My grunt of annoyance made much more sense than one of relief.

Sandy suddenly grabbed my arm. He flew Jack and I up in the sky on a funnel of dreamsand. He was hitting Nightmares the entire way up. 

Once we were in the sky, Sandy tossed us to safety. Some Nightmares came from me, I instantly stabbed them both of them with the arrow. The horse dissolved before my eyes. The arrow poofed away with them. Checking my arrow quiver I saw I was still missing an arrow- I’d deal with it later.

Flying up to the hoard of Nightmares, I stuffed the blade back in it’s hold. Pulling out two arrows I slashed at them.

Slash

Dodge

Attack

Dodge

Dodge

Attack

Slash

Double slash

I lost myself in the fight.

And it was  _ freeing. _

I got so lost it took me a moment to realize the sleigh had come up beside me. 

“Cupid!” Someone’s voice called out through the haze. Turning to it, I saw North holding out his hand. “Climb on!”

After hitting another Nightmare, I flew down to the sleigh. Jack was there along with Bunny. A quick search told me Tooth was flying around us.

Up above Sandman was fighting Pitch all by himself.

I squinted my eyes at Pitch. He lifted his hand up- that’s when I saw it. The arrow I’d fired at him on the roof. No wonder it hadn’t been replaced yet- it hadn’t made contact. The arrow looked different- the tip was all black.

“We gotta help Sandy!” Jack shouted out.

North cracked the reigns. He let out a a triumphant cheer as we rode towards the swirling vortex of terror.

As we approached, I focused my eyes at Pitch.

He docked his arrow.

My heart  _ whooshed _ .

“No!” I screamed, taking to the air.

Pitch let loose the arrow.

It hit Sandy in the back.

“No!” Jack shouted in agony.

“Cupid! Jack!” North called out.

Only I didn’t stop.

I flew faster towards the slowly dwindling golden sand.

The closer I got the less of Sandy there was.

When there was none left I let out a scream of pain. Like it was _ me _ that had been shot in the back with my teammate’s arrow.

Seeing there prey was gone-  _ don’t think about it don’t think about it don’t think about how it was your arrow- _ the Nightmares came after myself and Jack.

They swarmed us in a wave of black sand.

I didn’t know how to stop it.

Curling up in a ball, I pushed away thoughts about Sandy.

_ Which of this sand had been him? _

_ How much pain did he feel when he was hit? _

_ Did he fall in love and die? _

_ Or did his heart break? _

I screamed out in pain.

A bright light shined. My eyes shut in pain- the light grew and grew.

It  _ burned _ beneath my skin. Worse than when me feet touched the ground. Worse than any thought I had ever had _ ever _ .

It burned every last part of my skin and every feather. 

It was grief.

And sorrow.

And guilt.

And  _ rage _ .

And _ vengeance. _

And  _ the pain of losing them all over again. _

In my pain I grabbed another arrow. 

The light moved from me to the arrow. The gold shined brighter with the white light.

With just my arm I flung it at the hoard. The same time Jack lashed at them with his staff.

The Nightmares became the ones swarmed. There forms covered in ice and the burning bright light.

Of course this is when I blacked out.

When the world came back to focus, the cold wood of the sleigh was my sight.

“How did you do that?” Tooth was asking us.

“I, I didn’t know I could.” Jack answered.

“Sheila?” Bunnymund asked.

I myself was curling up in a ball. All I could see was Sandy’s death.

All I felt was the arrow coming back, reforming as gold and pure as when it had first been granted.

“Sheila, are you alright?” Bunnymund prompted again. He knelt down to my side.

I flinched away from her paw. My back hit the steps of the sleigh. Honestly I welcomed it. My eyes were welling up with tears. Turning away from the Guardians, facing the side of the sleigh, I did not allow myself the pleasure of weeping.

_ People are in trouble. _

_ Cry on your own time. _

_ Criers get slapped. _

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Did you like the bit with the arrow? I loved that. Honestly it’s why I made her Cupid instead of something else. I love me some angst.
> 
> Thank you to everyone that’s been writing reviews, they’re what’s keeping me writing this so often! THANK YOU AND I LOVE YOU!!!! (Sorry was it too soon to say ILY? Not taking it back.)


	10. Goodnight Mister Sandman

They had a small service for Sandy.

The funeral was a somber affair. They put candles on his Guardian plaque. The entire Pole was quiet, as every yeti and elf had stopped building toys to pay their respects.

The elves bobbed their heads. The jingle bells weren’t cheerey now. Now they were just reminders, that Sandy was gone.

I refused to attend. 

Instead I hid in the moon window.

Jack had wandered off earlier. Not that I cared in particular where he’d gone. There was a lot of stuff that didn’t matter anymore.

On the bright side, I still cared about my cherubs. Or the one cherub I had left, after  _ Pitch _ took the others. Just like he took  _ Sandy. _

Pelie came up to my shoulder, chittering.

I ignored him. 

Pelie chittered again.

“I don’t  _ know _ .” Came my harsh snap. Pelie made a sad noise. He floated down to sit on the wood of the window. Feeling annoyed now (also guilt, but that was an awful disgusting  _ thing _ that should be outlawed) I sat up. “There’s just...a lot to think about now, Pelie. There’s no time for-”

Pelie huffed. With a shake of the head, he pointed down to the vigil.

Internally I grimaced. “They don’t want me there.”

Before Pelie could confirm my fears I teleported away.

 

==CR==

 

The sigil had ended some time ago. 

Now I was by one of the large windows the globe room had. Jack was leaning against the window, his hoodie pulled over his face. 

My own hair was left to it’s wildness behind me. All the flying outside had made it a tangled mess. Not that I really cared, or anything. How my hair looked didn’t matter _ because Sandy was dead. _

I broke another arrow over my knee, tossing the remains on the growing pile of pieces. 

When it spawned, I pulled it out and broke it again.

North came up behind me. He opened his mouth to ask a question as I broke the arrow over my knee. His eyes went wide, startled, before he backed away.

The pieces fell to the ground, dissolving away into nothing as it responded in the quiver.

“Are you alright?” He asked Jack.

Jack sighed. “I just, I wish I could’ve done something.”

“Done something?” North repeated, surprise in his voice. “Jack, you stood up to Pitch. You saved us.”

_ And I doomed us, by giving Pitch that arrow. _

_ I should’ve known something was wrong when it didn’t respawn. _

_ I should’ve known Pitch was crafty. _

_ I should’ve  _ stopped him _. _

_ Because I didn’t, know Sandy is dead. _

“But Sandy wo-”

“Would be proud of what you did.” North assured.

“It was my arrow that killed him.” I grunted in barely withheld range, snapping another arrow over my knee. “ _ This _ arrow- that keeps-coming- _ back! _ ”

I threw the pieces in the direction of North’s head. They poofed away before they could make contact.

“It was not _ your _ arrow.” North assured. Another arrow appeared in my hand. “Pitch took your arrow- corrupted it. Like he do to Sandy’s sand.”

His words-while true- didn’t help me. Instead I gripped the arrow tight. Not enough to break it, just barely.

“I don’t know who you were in your past lives, but in this life you are Guardians.” North told us. With the kind of sincerity that it had to have come from his belly.

“What if we were worse than Pitch?” I argued. “What then?”

North laughed, a small thing that made his cheeks go rosy like Santa’s cheeks. “Doubt it.”

“The bunny would say different.” I growled in a low voice, squeezing again on the arrow.

“No. Bunnymund means well.”

I turned away from him.

“But how can I know who I am, until I find out who I was?” Jack asked, having been staring out the window like an emo teen as I ranted like an...emo teen.

“You will. I feel it, in my belly.” North told him.

_ ‘Did I not say he would...wow I’m a genius.’ _

Huffing in annoyance, I broke another arrow over my knee. The two of them walked to the globe. I stayed behind a minute. 

Pelie floated down to my side.

My gaze narrowed on him. “Shut up.” Turning tail, I walked after them.

When I saw the globe, I tensed up.

“Look how fast they’re going out.” Tooth gasped out, her voice saddened in dismay.

I flew up towards the globe. Running my hand over the lights, half of them vanished as I moved my hand along it. The lights that stayed were going dim anyway. “Pitch.” I stated, a growl under my breath.

“It’s fear.” Jack realized as he flew up to the top of the globe. “He’s tipped the balance.”

Flying around the globe, I found where Lilac lived. The dot for her town still shined bright, not the slightest dim to it. The ones around it dropped like flies. That made me want to break an over my knee arrow again.

_ Or I can break it over Pitch’s head. _

_ That plan. I’m loving that plan. _

_ Plan Over-My-Head is a Go. _

Beneath me, watching the lights fade, stood North and Tooth. As the lights faded, the lights in their eyes did too. My wings ruffled behind my back as I watched the Guardians wilt.

“Hey, buck up ya sad-sacks.” Bunnymund spoke up. He hopped up to face his fellow Guardians. “Come on! We can still turn this around!” He jumped on a control panel. “Easter is tomorrow and I need your help. I say we pull out all the stops and we get those little lights flickering again!”

Then I pushed him over the edge,.

He yelled in surprise.

I beamed at the Guardians, and Jack. “Suddenly, I am filled with hope for a better tomorrow!”

Jack laughed. North shook his head, also laughing. Tooth gave me a scolding glare that quickly became a grin.

He caught himself on the bannister below, swinging himself back up to the balcony. He glared at me.

“And now that hope is dead. Woe is me.” I let myself spin upside down midair. My hair stretched down beneath me in a mess of curls.

“Well there’s something I can do about that!” Bunnymund boasted. “Follow me, everyone! We’re bringing back hope!”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally quit my job! Now I have time to finish my homework so I won’t fail the semester. Go me!


	11. Easter Egg Maker

North brought us down the elevator. 

“Bunny is right.” He stated as we reached the bottom. “As much as it pains me to say old friend, this time Easter is more important than Christmas!”

“Hey! Did everyone hear that?!” Bunnymund shouted to us.

“I didn’t hear anything.” Was my remark.

“We must hurry to the Warren. Everyone, to the sleigh!” North cheered.

“Ohh no, mate.” Bunnymund hopped in front of North. “My warren my rules. Buckle up.”

He tapped his foot on the ground.

“Shostakovich!” North gasped.

When the others dropped from the hole, I expected to have to stop flying to follow.

Nope.

The hole sucked me in.

_ Bunnymund we will have WORDS! WORDS I say! _

 

==CR==

 

_ Nevermind this is the best rollercoaster of my life! _

I screamed at another loop-de-loop.

The others were screaming too but they sounded less excited.

Soon, the tunnel spat us out onto the grass. I was rolling around, laughing off the adrenaline.

“‘Buckle up’. Is very funny.” North remarked.

“Welcome to the Warren-” Bunnymund cheered, as I got back to the air. The bunny tensed, looking around the warren. “Something’s up.”

That got all of us tense.

I pulled out my blade. My eyes darted around to find the threat. 

From one of the other tunnels a crowd of tiny white eggs ran out in panic.

The Guardians went into defense positions. Jack readied his staff. 

Bunnymund sounded a battle cry.

We charged at the tunnel, ready to fight the foe.

...until a small human child ran out of the tunnel.

_ “Sophie?” _ Jack asked.

“You know this tiny human?” I asked him.

Jack nodded, confused. “Yeah. She’s Jamie’s baby sister.”

At that, everyone put their weapons away.

The little blonde child only giggled. She dropped the three eggs she was carrying deciding to chase an elf. “Elf, elf, elf!”

“What is SHE doing HERE!?” Bunnymund asked.

North suddenly winced. He reached into his coat. “Ah, snow globe.”

I smacked my face. 

“Crikey! Somebody do something!” Bunnymund pleaded while chasing the tiny human.

“Don’t look at me, I’m invisible, remember?” Jack reminded them.

“Same.” I pointed out, floating so that my hair was falling.

Meanwhile, the child had caught her prey. She was dragging the elf away by the hat.

“Don’t worry, Bunny. I bet she’s a fairy fan.” Tooth flew up to the child while I righted myself.

“This is gonna be good for a laugh.” I commented, making Jack grin in agreement. He leaned on his staff to watch.

“It’s okay little one.” Tooth assured.

The child giggled. “Pretty!”

“Awww! You know what, I got something for you. Here it is.” Tooth held out her palm to the child. “Look at all the pretty teeth with little blood and gum on them.”

The child blinked, before screaming and running away.

“Blood and gums? When was the last time you guys actually hung out with kids?” jack asked.

The child ran up to a giant stone egg, where white eggs had run away. “Peek-a-boo!”

I went up beside the child.

“We are very busy bringing joy to children! We don’t have time-” North paused. “-for children.”

Jack made a snowflake for this child. She giggled as it floated around her head.

Suddenly inspired I took out an arrow, breaking it in half and breaking those pieces in pieces. Once they were broken enough, I put my hands in a ball and blew on them. Opening my hands, revealed dozens of tiny red hearts. Blowing another breath, the hearts floated towards the child.

She giggled at them, and the snowflakes. She jumped to grab at them. The snowflake breezed past her.

“If one little kid can ruin Easter, then...we’re in worse shape than I thought.” Jack mused.

The snowflake hit Bunnymund right on the nose. 

So I waited for the fallout, for his irritated face.

Instead Bunnymund grinned wide, a twinkle in his eyes. 

 

==CR==

 

White eggs continued to walk along the pathways. 

I floated with Tooth, watching as the eggs became doosed with pastel coloring.

“Am I the only one who’s thinking _ ‘what if I crush one?’ _ ” Tooth gave me a look. “What! It’s just a question!”

“Alright troops, it’s time to push back. That means eggs! Everywhere!” Bunnymund shouted to us all.

 

==CR==

 

“Heaps of you in every high-rise, farm house and trailer park!” Bunnymund continued as the eggs fell into a colorful lake. “In tennis shoes and cereal bowls! Oh, there will be bathtubs filled with my beautiful goodies!”

An elf standing at the mouth of the river was pushed in by the oncoming crowd of eggs. I thought it was cool. I flew down to the lake, running my hand along the top of the river. My hand came back covered in swirls of purple and blue.

North picked up one of the eggs from the river.

“Okay, that’s little strange.”

“Naw, mate-” Bunnymund spoke up. I turned to him, dropping my jaw at the image before me. “That’s adorable.”

_ ‘I got three words for that, and they can’t be said in front of children.’ _

The egg parade marched on.

“There will be springtime! On every continent! And I’m bringing hope with me!” Bunnymund announced.

I shook my head, flying out after the eggs or something that made more sense than a Bunnymund high on Jack’s magic.

“Too Christmas-y, mate, paint ‘em blue.” Bunnymund told a yeti, who had just painted over a hundred eggs bright red.

Flying to the end of the parade, I saw Sophie giggling as she showed off a colored egg she’d ‘found’.

“That’s a beauty!” Bunnymund praised the find. He offered his paw to the child, who took it with a giggle. “Now all we gotta do is get him and his little mates through the tunnels, to the top, and we’ll have ourselves Easter.”

Jack walked up. Sophie yawned, curling up with in Bunnymund’s arms. The child giggled tiredly.

“Not bad.” Jack complimented.

“You did good, rabbit.” I added.

“Not bad yourselves.” Bunnymund praised back.

“Look, I’m sorry about that whole, you know, the ‘kangaroo’ thing.” Jack apologized.

“It’s the accent, isn’t it?” Bunnymund asked, grinning. The other Guardians walked up behind us. They cooed at the sleeping child. “Ah, poor little ankle-biter. Look at her, all tuckered out.”

“I love her!” Tooth chirped.

I took the child from Bunnymund, smiling down at her face.

“I think it’s time to get her home.” Tooth spoke up what everyone wished they weren’t thinking.

“How about I take her home?” Jack offered.

“Jack, no! Pitch is-” Tooth interjected.

“-no match for this.” Jack waved his staff.

“Which is why we need you here, with us.” Bunnymund pointed out.

“I’m helping.” Came my statement.

“Cupid, you-”

“-won’t let this child go. Look at her, she’s happy and she’s sleeping. Wake a sleeping child, and die.” I advised.

The Guardians were unsure.

“Trust me, we’ll be quick as a bunny.” Jack winked at them.

He flew down one of the tunnels. I followed behind him, keeping Sophie close so she wouldn’t wake up.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this was late. Got caught up in school stuff, and writing other stories.


	12. Blackest Day

Jack brought me back to that boy Jamie’s house. The two children must be related.

He lowered Sophie onto the bed. The child refused to let him go.

I floated over to them. “Hold still.” I instructed.

The Winter spirit froze.

With two fingers, I poked the child’s side. She giggled, still asleep, as she fell onto the bed.

Jack, Baby Tooth, and Pelie looked at me in surprise.

I shrugged.

The child rolled over the edge of the bed. Before she could fall, I grabbed her. She was still sleeping when I tucked her under the covers.

Jack threw a squeaking toy onto the bed, which Sophie grabbed to cuddle.

The four of us flew out of the room.

Pelie shut the window, locking it behind us.

“We should get back.” Jack suggested.

“Yeah, who knows what kinda problems they made in the hour we were gone.” I joked.

Jack laughed. He cut off his laugh, turning his head away. He was...looking for something. “That voice, I know that voice...”

“Uhh Jack, buddy, why don’t we stop-”

_ “SESTRA!” _ A voice cried out. A voice that struck a chord in me, one that I had to obey and help.

My wings locked up. 

Pelie touched my shoulder.

“It...who is that?” I asked, more to myself than the others. “I know her.”

_ “SESTRA!” _ She shouted again.

I flew after her, Jack flying beside me.

The voice continued to scream out for me. No matter how fast I flew towards it, the voice never changed pitch. It was always just out of reach.

Eventually we were on the outskirts of town.

_ “SESTRA!” _

The voice kept screaming for me, each time I swear my heart burst in my chest. Worse than any time I touched the ground.

_ “SESTRA!” _

I stopped in a clearing, still trying to follow her voice. There was nothing around except an old wooden bedframe.

Pelie flew up to my side. He chittered in panic.

“Shut up, you overactive squirrel!” I snapped harshly at him. Didn’t he understand? Didn’t he know how important this voice was? How I couldn’t ignore her screaming out for me?

Pelie squeaked, saddened.

“Don’t worry, there’s still time.” Jack told a concerned Baby Tooth.

I flew to the bedframe, seeing an opening large enough to fit through. Taking one arrow, I fired at the plank of wood. Jack slammed his staff down on the same spot. The wood shattered, making the hole large enough for us.

_ “SESTRA!”  _

So I jumped down. Ignoring the chitters in my ear.

 

==CR==

 

Once we came out of the tunnel, we landed on a slab of stone.

Pushing myself up into the air, I listened for the sound. Her screaming-while it made every part of me decay and fester like an old wound-was the only way I could find her.

“Baby Tooth, Baby...come on!” He assured with her. My cherub has given up arguing with me. “I have to find out what that is.”

I flew ahead. The cavern I found left me speechless. Thousands of fairies were screaming from bird cages. Below them were hills of the teeth canisters.

This was Pitch’s Lair.

And yet...

“MY CHERUBS!” I gasped.

Across the room, all trapped together in one tiny cage, were all of my cherubs.

Without hesitation I flew to them. I counted them all, taking note only two were missing. Pelie, and-

“Hamil. Where’s Hamil?!” I asked them.

Some wilted, thinking about their friend.

Others shook their head. They admitted they hadn’t seen him in ages.

“That’s- That’s not good.” My hands gripped tight to the bar of the cage. The metal bent beneath my fingers. “That’s not  _ good _ . I had him watching  _ her _ .”

The cherubs gasped. They all knew how important Lilac was. Or at least knew of her, how she’d been hit by many arrows and was never affected. 

They all cheered when Pelie flew up.

I huffed, hiding my relief. “Pelie, find the lock. We need to get everyone-”

_ “SESTRA!” _

My attention turned to the pile of canisters below.

_ “SESTRA!” _

“BRB!”

Swan diving, I searched for the source of the screaming.

_ For my teeth. _

As I searched, my head bumped into Jack’s.

We both winced before starting the search again.

“Looking for something?” A dark voice spoke up.

Jack and I immediately went on the offensive. Jack fired an ice spell towards the shadow while I let loose three arrows at once. 

Pitch wasn’t there.

He laughed at our attempt.

Jack and I followed the sounds of his laughter. He had this  _ demented  _ staircase, that even though I was flying beside Jack we both ended up on different levels.

_ “Don’t be afraid, Jack, Cupid. I’m not going to hurt either of you.” _ Pitch’s voice echoed.

“Like we believe  _ that _ .” I snapped.

“Yeah. Afraid?” Jack sees Pitch on a bridge across the cavern and heads after him. Jack “I’m not afraid of you!”

“Maybe not. But you are afraid of something.” Pitch remarked, hiding in another shadow. “Oh, both of you, so very afraid.”

“I’m not scared of a man who refuses to show his face! Refuses to fight like a man!” I spat at the darkness.

Pitch’s laugh echoed. “But you fear something. It’s the one thing I always know.” He came out of the shadows, facing us. “People’s greatest fears. Yours is that no one will ever believe in you.” He told Jack. 

As Jack backed away in fear, I jumped forward.

“Your’s is that you’ll let her down.”

I froze.

Suddenly all I saw were shadows. The caverns full of teeth, the cages upon cages of fairies and my cherubs, they were gone. 

Pitch wasn’t going to have the satisfaction of my screaming. Instead I flew up, trying to escape the shadows.

Yet as I flew, I heard a voice speaking to me. One that wasn’t Pitch’s or Jack’s or my cherubs’.

It sounded like mine.

_ “Why didn’t you do better?” _

_ “Why couldn’t you be more like the Guardians?” _

_ “You left her. Alone. With that  _ woman _. How COULD YOU?!” _

“Shut up!” I shouted to the voice, flying towards a brick wall. Good for me I stopped before impact. “Enough of this!” I shouted at Pitch.

_ “And worst of all, Jack, you’re afraid you’ll never know why. Why you? Why were you chosen...to be like this?” _

I growled. The shadows took over my world again.

_ “Cupid you fear...you fear you were a monster. Something _ worse _ than  _ me _.” _ He laughed at that.

The shadows faded, showing that I was at a brick wall. Jack stood there too, clutching tight to the staff. My hands were clenched in fists at my side, fighting to fire arrows at Pitch’s face. 

“Well fear not, for the answer to that.” Pitch walked up. 

I stood in defense of Jack.

“Is right here.”

Pitch held out two canisters of teeth.

One had a brunet boy, with a face like Jack’s.

The other had a woman, with black hair instead of blonde and a smirk instead of a smile. 

“Do you want them, children?” Pitch inquired. “Your memories?”

He held them out towards us. I flinched away from it. 

Jack pulled his hand back.

Pith vanished, taking the teeth with him.

“No!” I grunted angrily, reaching out fruitlessly for him.

Pitch laughed in the misery.

Flying after him, I searched the twisted staircases and corridors. In all my rush I realized I’d lost Jack again. I was alone. _ Again. _

_ “Everything you wanted to know-”  _ The shadow behind me morphed into Pitch. He held out two boxes. _ “...in these little boxes.” _

I tried to fly away from the shadows, from his voice, but he followed me.

_ “Why did you end up like this? Unseen. Unable to reach out to anyone. What were you before. You want the answers so badly. You want to grab them, and fly off with them. But you’re afraid of what the Guardians will think, of what the  _ other _ will think.” _

“Go away!” I snarled at him.

_ “You’re afraid of disappointing them.” _ I aimed an arrow at a shadow, only for it to change into twelve shadows. _ “Well let me ease your minds about one thing. They’ll never accept you two. Not really.” _

“Stop it! Stop it!” Jack’s voice raged.

“Jack!” I shouted. I flew in the direction of his voice. “Jack!”

“Cupid!” Jack shouted back.

The shadows receded as I came up to Jack’s side. We were in front of Pitch’s globe,  covered in the bright lights of believers.

I held Jack’s arm, he did the same. The assurance we needed, grounding us back away from Pitch’s shadows and lies.

“After all, you’re not one of them.”

Jack aimed his staff, I aimed an arrow.

“You don’t know what we are!” Jack shouted.

“Of course I do.” Pitch laughed, arrogantly. “You’re Jack Frost. You’re Cupid. You make messes wherever you go. Why, you’re doing it right now.”

He tossed the boxes.

I grabbed mine, before it could hit the floor.

“What have you done?” I snarled at him, while Jack held his teeth close to his chest.

“More to the point Cupid, Jack, what have  _ you _ done?” Pitch backed away into the shadows, laughing at us.

Jack and I charged at him, only to be separated again.

“Cupid!” Jack shouted, once he realized we were lost.

“Jack!” I shouted back.

The lights faded back on. I could hear Jack, but like an echo. Like I shouldn’t be hearing him but Pitch was allowing it, to hurt us both.

So I flew back, onto to see a barrier had been put up. At my feet, were broken eggs.

“No!” I gasped.

“Baby Tooth!” Jack’s voice echoed back to me.

I swore. “Pelie!” 

_ “Happy Easter, children.”  _ Pitch mocked us.

Then I looked back down at the broken eggs.

And I’d realized, what  _ we’d  _ done.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this was so late! I’m flying to Africa tomorrow, Wi-fi is gonna be spotty, so sorry if I can’t get any updates out!


	13. Darkest Day

The tunnel lead me to where the Guardians were. It was somewhere in England, or at the very least had British people.

The entire pathway had been littered with shattered eggs. The father I flew, the more I saw. The more became enraged at Pitch. How  _ dare  _ he ruin this Easter? Who was he to take away a holiday from the bunny? First he took away Tooth’s fairies and children, then dreams, now he had to attack Bunnymund.

Don’t get me wrong. I still didn’t like the rabbit. He was rude, and overly smug about his position as a Guardian.

But he didn’t deserve his holiday being ruined.

I found Jack, in the clearing of a park. He was watching the holiday crumble in Bunny’s hands.

The children complained. It hurt, knowing that my failure had cost so much.

“There are no eggs.”

“There’s none anywhere.”

“I give up.”

“Come on, let’s go.”

“I don’t understand.”

Bunnymund ran up to them, not caring if they saw him. He hid in the bushes. 

“Maybe he just hid them really well this year.” One girl pointed out, but even she didn’t sound convinced.

Bunnymund jumped out. “Kids! Oi!”

The kids didn’t notice him.

He wasn’t  _ seen _ . 

“I checked everywhere! There’s nothing!” Another boy complained.

“Yes there is! There is!” Bunnymund held out a basket, filled with the only eggs to survive. “I mean these aren’t my best lookin’ googies, but they’ll do in a pinch!” He showed them the eggs.

“I can’t believe it.” One child complained. My hands clenched at my sides.

“I know.” Bunnymund cheered.

“There’s no such thing as the Easter Bunny.” 

You could hear the sound of Bunnymund’s heart shattering, like an egg cracking on the floor. “What?”

“Easter’s over. Forget this.” A child walked away from the park. Other children followed.

I looked over to the other Guardians. They must know what to do- what were supposed to be doing right now. Except Tooth and North, they were speechless. They watched the scene with heartbreak.

“No! Wrong!” Bunnymund called out to the children. Pleading. Begging.  _ Desperate.  _ “Not, not true! I’m right in front of ya, mate!”

“There’s no such thing.”

“I know.”

The children walked right through Bunnymund.

Tooth gasped behind me. 

North muttered something sad in Russian.

I was swearing vengeance on Pitch. 

“They don’t see me.” Bunnymund sighed. “They don’t see me.”

Tooth flew past. Feathers were falling off her wings again. She went to Bunnymund’s side. 

_ Just another life I failed to save _

“Jack, Cupid, where were you?” North’s voice came from behind. Even from his voice, I knew he was exhausted. They had been fighting the Nightmares probably the entire time we were gone. “The Nightmares attacked the tunnels. They smashed every egg, crushed every basket. Nothing made it to the surface.”

Tooth saw us. She came up, more feathers falling. “Cupid! Jack!” She cheered. She stopped, staring at the teeth canisters in our hands. She gasped. “Where did you get those?”

“I was...it’s...” Jack stammered.

“There wasn’t...I didn’t...”

“Where’s Baby Tooth?” Tooth pressed. I turned to Jack, searching for the tiny fairy. Then I remembered Pelie had been there too. When I saw he wasn’t with me, I inhaled sharply. “Oh no, what have you done?”

“That is why you weren’t here?” North stepped forward to us. On instinct, I stood closer to Jack. “You were with Pitch?”

“No, listen, listen...I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for this to happen.” Jack excused.

“There wasn’t any time. It all happened so fast.” I added in Jack’s defense. 

“They have to go.”

Turning around, Bunnymund had snuck up on us. Or rather I just hadn’t been listening for him.

Jack was shocked at Bunnymund’s statement. “What?”

“Hey, this wasn’t us!” I snapped. “This was all-”

“We should never have trusted you!” Bunnymund raged. “Easter is new beginnings, new life. Easter is about hope.” He sagged. “And now it’s gone.” He walked away from us, his ears nearly dragging the ground.

_ That was our fault _

_ We let Pitch manipulate us _

_ Use us _

_ He knew our fears _

_ He played us like children’s toys _

_ And because we gave in, we lost so much _

_ We cost the Guardians so much _

_ Maybe they’re right not to trust us _

Looking back at North and Tooth, I was they had already turned away from us.

The box of teeth hummed in my hand. A song began playing in my head, and I found I welcomed the bitter nostalgia.

_ Deception.  _

_ Disgrace. _

_ As plain as the scar that he wears on his face. _

_ You’re not one of us _

Jack was looking at me, hoping that maybe  _ I  _ had an idea.

But I had  _ nothing _ .

The tooth box hummed again.

_ She wanted words and all I had heard was nothing. _

_ I got nothing. _

I shrugged, helpless. 

Pitch was right.

As awful a thing that was to think, Pitch was right.

All I could do was reach out my hand to Jack.

_ I don’t wanna be left behind _

_ I’ve been so blind to all that I have broken _

_ Can we put this back together? _

_ I know this will take time _

_ Can we put the past behind us? _

_ Tonight I’m gonna fight for you _

_ Just give me one last chance to make it right _

To show that I still stood with him. Even as everything else crumbled around us.

_ Even when we’re breaking down _

_ We can find a way to break through _

_ Even if we can’t find heaven _

_ I’ll walk through Hell with you _

_ I’m gonna stand by you.  _

Jack didn’t take my hand. He pulled something out of his pocket. You can imagine my surprise when I saw the Russian nesting doll that North had shown us. Jack has kept it? All this time?

He let it fall to the ground.

_ Mmm whatcha say _

_ Mmm that you only meant well _

_ Well of course you did _

_ Mmm whatcha say _

_ Mmm what did you say _

Jack grabbed my hand. I spread my wings. They two of us pushed off the ground at the same time.

_ Where did we go wrong _

_ Please tell me _

_ Where did we go wrong? _

_ Where did we go- _

_ Won’t somebody tell me? _

_ Where did we go wrong? _

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was supposed to be up for the 21st. Travel plans messed that up. Lol.


	14. Darkness, Cold, and Pain

Jack brought me to Antarctica.

I mean, it’s not an  _ awful  _ place to go.

It certainly fit my mood.

He led me to an iceberg. He glared at the edge, at the freezing water beyond it.

“Jack. Tell me what you’re thinking.” I told him.

He was gritting his teeth. His face was turning blue. Which to someone warm blooded, would be red with rage. “We could’ve stopped it.”

“Yeah we could’ve.” I stated. My arms grabbed his, flexing them down to keep him from lashing out. Jack seethed. “But then one of the others would’ve taken Sophie home. Who  _ knows  _ what Pitch would’ve done to them.”

“But we still could’ve fought the Nightmares. We could’ve protected those eggs!”

“How do you know that?” I questioned him. “Do you- do you have any idea how many Nightmares they fought?”

“No! Because I wasn’t there!”

“Because Pitch lured us to his liar!”

“He wouldn’t have done that-”

“He could’ve made us fight the eggs! It was dark in that fear scape thing- I would’ve hit  _ you _ if the shadows hadn’t pulled back!”

“ _ WE SHOULD HAVE KNOWN!” _ Jack shouted in my face.

_ “WE’RE STUPID KIDS!”  _ I shouted back.  _ “HOW COULD WE?” _

Jack continued to feel the rage.

He ran away from me, rushing to the iceberg. My wings flapped, pushing me after him.

Jack reeled his arm back to throw the teeth.

I halted, just short of him. He may be angry, but those are his teeth. He should get to keep them. 

My hand clenched around the cannister in my hand. 

_ I’m only a man in a silly red sheet _

_ Digging for Kryptonite on this one-way street _

_ I’m only a man in a funny red sheet  _

_ Looking for special things inside of me _

_ It’s not easy _

_ To be me _

“I thought this might happen.” Pitch’s voice appeared behind me. 

My hand clenched again.

“They never really believed in you. I was just trying to show you that. But  _ I _ understand.”

_ All my life I’ve been good but now _

_ Whoa I’m thinking ‘what the hell’ _

“SHUT UP!” I raged.

Turning around, I fired four arrows at Pitch. Jack fired a large blast of ice. Pitch blocked it all woth nightmare sand. Sand that was only powerful because of what he’d done to Sandy. 

“You don’t understand  _ anything _ !” Jack leapt over myself, landing on the other side of Pitch. He blasted more ice.

“You’re a sociopath! They  _ have _ no feelings or empathy!” I flung more arrows, trying to fire from all directions so Pitch would feel trapped.

Pitch grunted in annoyance- because he was  _ barely  _ using  _ any _ effort against us. My arrows collided with his sand, bursting into golden ash. 

“No? I don’t know what it’s like to be cast out?” Pitch shouted over the roar of the snow. 

I leapt into the sky, grabbing all of my arrows. There wasn’t time to fire them all so I just threw them at Pitch. In an explosion of sand and ice, I wondered if he’d even been hit.

When I found Jack on the ground, it was hard to see anything. His snow had made a bigger blizzard than intended.

“To not be believed in. To long for a  _ family _ .”

_ You’ll be in my heart _

_ Yes you’ll be in my heart _

_ You’ll be here in my heart, always.  _

_ Always and always _

The song made me think of Lilac. Of her drawings of ponies and dragons and her bitch mother.

Now- I was  _ pissed _ .

I whirled around, reaching for arrows. Only none were there so I grabbed my dagger.

“All those years in the shadows I thought, no one else knows what this feels like.” Pitch smiled _ -he had the nerve to smile in my face- _ as if we wouldn’t year him apart because of words. “But now I see I was wrong.”

I kept telling myself not to believe him. That he was a liar. Everything- every  _ single _ thing out of his mouth was a lie.

He broke Bunnymund.

He hurt Tooth.

He killed Sandy.

He took my cherubs.

He threatened Lilac.

He doesn’t deserve to be believed.

“We don’t have to be alone, not the three of us. Jack. Cupid.” Pitch promised. And...he was being sincere. “I believe in you. And I know children will too.”

“In me?”

“Really?” I asked. Later I would wonder how I could say that without sounding sarcastic.

“Yes! Look at what we can do!” He gestured behind him.

An eruption of a sculpture stood before us in the snow. It had his sand and the golden dust of my arrows in cases by Jack’s ice.

“What goes together better than the cold, dark, and pain?” Pitch asked. My chest ache-where my heart should be-at being called a creature of pain.

That’s not who I am.

I don’t want to hurt them. 

It just happens. 

_ When you’re feeling certain feelings that just don’t seem right _

_ Treat those nasty feelings like a reading light _

_ And turn it off. _

“We can make them believe. We’ll give them a world where everything, everything is-”

“Pitch black?” Jack finished for him.

“ _ Je’cuse _ !” I shouted, pointing the dagger in his direction. 

Pitch stopped. “And Jack Frost, and Cupid too. They’ll believe in all of us. Equally.”

“I don’t  _ want _ to be believed in.” I admitted. “No, not like this. Not if the cost of belief is this high! I want to  _ protect  _ kids, not scare them!”

“Except you’re already doing that, Cupid.” Pitch pointed out. “All of your children, every child you’ve shot with an arrow, all they’ve felt is pain. Wasn’t it good?”

My lips thinned.

“I’d rather they feel heartbreak...than feel fear. Especially towards  _ me _ .” I stated. Pulling out an arrow, I aimed it at his face. “So for the last time:  _ leave us alone!” _

Jack stood by my side. He prepared his staff, getting it ready to fight.

The image, of me aiming projectiles while a person beside me held a staff, was  _ achingly  _ familiar.

The Nightmare King wasn’t happy. We’d rejected him. He thought he found peers- well too little too late.

Pitch’s expression shifted to a snarl. “Very well. You want to be left alone? Done. But first.”

There was a familiar squeak.

“Baby Tooth!” Jack and I yelped. We jumped in defense for the fairy.

Pitch tightened his fist.

Baby Tooth squeaked.

We stopped.

“The staff, Jack. Cupid, your bow.” Pitch demanded.

I snarled. 

“You have bad habits of interfering. Now hand them over. And I’ll let her go.” Pitch promised.

Baby Tooth chittered- begging in fairy for us not to do it.

“Where’s Pelie?” I demanded.

Pitch scoffed. “With the rest of your ilk. Didn’t seem fair to separate them. And I just might.” He answered, smiling like a shark. “Now hand them over.”

With little choice but plenty hesitation, we hand him our weapons. Pitch held the staff in his hand, with my bow tucked in the crook of his arm.

“Alright, now let her go.” Jack reminded him.

Pitch paused. “No.” ‘ _ Oh you are so dead.’  _ “You said you wanted to be alone. So be alone!”

Baby Tooth poked him with her beak. For a full two seconds I thought she’d freed herself. Only for Pitch to girl her at a wall of ice.

“No!”

“Monster!” I snarled at Pitch. 

Pitch grinned as he lifted Jack’s staff and my bow. He snapped them over his knee.

There was a bright light from our objects and my heart constricted in my chest. There was a sudden pain in my wings, like they were plucked off only to be put back on backwards and glued on with lava.

In our distraction Pitch attacked.

He slammed us into the wall with Nightmare sand. I screamed in pain. The impact had pushed at my wings at the wrong angle.

They were broken.

I slid off the wall, towards the cavern below.

 

==CR==

 

As soon as I hit the ground, it became clear there was worse pain than broken wings.

My body collided with the snowy ground. Once my skin made contact I was screaming in agony at the rushes of pain. Of memories of memories pushing past my skull. Of knowing something was missing from me but not knowing  _ what.  _

Wanting to cry, but not knowing why.

There was a name stuck on my tongue. The feel of it was familiar, from the time before. I knew that if I called it out that a person would answer me- save me. Because that’s what the person behind the name did.

Pity the name made me sob.

_ I’m limited _

_ Just look at me _

_ I’m limited _

_ Just look at you _

_ You can do all I couldn’t do _

_...now it’s up to  _ you

“Cupid!” Jack called out.

I cried out in agony. “It hurts!” I sobbed. “I...I can’t feel my wings! It  _ hurts!” _

“What- your wing’s? Cupid what should I do?”

“I don’t know!  _ Everything hurts!” _ I cried out. “Oh it’s like- like the Earth itself is spitting me out because I’m not  _ welcome  _ and it’s only when I touch it that it  _ remembers. _ ” I sobbed.

Jack was panicking over me. I tried to null my sobs, put that only made it worse. Now we were both miserable and in without a way out.

“Where’s...” I hiccuped as my sobs just turned to pained grunts. “Baby Tooth?”

Jack gasped. “Baby Tooth!”

The little fairy chittered at the summons.

Jack ran to her, lifting up the poor thing.

I tried picking myself up. Pain from my back and whole body kept me down.

“You alright?” Jack asked Baby Tooth. The fairy sneezed. “Sorry, all I can do is keep you cold.”

“I-I can take her.” I held out my hands. Jack turned to me. “Warm blood fo-for the win.”

Jack gave a small laugh, the kind that come when you feel defeated and any laugh will do.

He walked over towards me, pausing to look at something on the floor. He slipped Baby Tooth in my hands, as I followed his line of sight. 

My bow.

Broken in half.

The string had popped.

“Pitch was right- I make a mess of everything.”

He slid down beside me.

I cupped Baby Tooth in my palms. The fairy accepted it, curling around my fingers. 

“Heh...yeah.” My thumb brushed on Baby Tooth’s head feathers. “World class screw-up.”

The fairy welcomed the brushing for another moment. She flew out of my hand, reaching for my teeth cannister.

“Hey Baby Tooth, What are you-”

_ “Sis...sis.” _

At the voice, I froze. 

Baby Tooth flittered over to Jack. “Hey-” The fairy dashed into Jack’s pocket. He reached for her. His expression went vague, as a golden light shined from his pocket.

I held up my tooth box. 

Jack pulled out his.

Both were glowing brightly.

Baby Tooth was beaming.

_ “DARCY!” _

I opened the box.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas Eve!


	15. The Story of Darcy Anderson

_ “Who are you?” _

_ “Huh? Morgue it’s me, your sister!” _

_ “Uhh...” _

_ “I’m gonna go get breakfast!” _

 

_ ==CR== _

 

_ “You told me to pay my respects to the dead.” _

_ “But, Darcy, we’re not dead.” _

_ “Yet.” _

 

_ ==CR== _

 

_ “I can travel realities.” _

_ “Yeah?” _

_ “Yeah.” _

_ “Awesome.” _

 

_ ==CR== _

 

_ “Get your act together, Morgue. We got stuff to do. Cry on your own time.” _

_ “Yeah well I think I’ll cry- did you just slap me?” _

_ “Criers get slapped.” _

 

_ ==CR== _

 

_ “I’m not scared of the things in the dark. That would mean there’s something in the dark scarier than  _ me _.” _

 

_ ==CR== _

 

_ “Morgan...what if I’m worse than him?” _

_ “Do you want them be afraid of you? The bad people who hurt the other kids?” _

_ “Yeah.” _

_ “Do you want  _ the innocent  _ to fear you?” _

_ “...kinda.” _

_ “Then you’re better than him.” _

_ “Really?” _

_ “Well some of these kids are buttholes. It’s okay to scare them.” _

 

_ ==CR== _

 

_ “What did you say?” _

_ “You heard me. Our foster father was a peodophile. Last Monday- he tried to take you. I switched beds because then he would take me.” _

_ “You- you didn’t have to do that.” _

_ “You’re right. I should’ve killed him that night, instead of now.” _

_ “You’re only nine, Darcy.” _

 

_ ==CR== _

 

_ Darcy sat in a crowd of children. It was a community assembly. She wasn’t watching the presentation. Instead her eyes searched the parents. Her purple eyes questioning each one. She had gotten good at seeing the rotten ones. _

_ Her sister sat beside her. Morgan’s amber eyes were just as diligent. _

_ The assembly was to address the recent child abductions. _

_ Darcy knew she and Morgan would have the matter settled. _

_ Her eyes landed on one parent, sitting near the back.  _

_ She poked her sister’s arm. She nodded with her head. “Fourth row, sitting at the end.” _

_ Morgan saw him and nodded. “We go at lights out.” _

_ They bumped fists. _

_ Darcy knew her sister didn’t like that Darcy was a killer. Instead of trying to stop her, though, Morgan taught Darcy how to do it right. _

 

_ ==CR== _

 

_ “It’s a lime shirt! Not the Hope Diamond!” _

_ “If you had waited  _ ten author damned minutes!”

 

_ ==CR== _

 

_ “Ye-wait...Mane 6? Princesses? Ponyville? You went to ‘My Little Pony’ didn’t you!” _

_ “Not by choice, I remind you.” _

_ She laughed. “So, what were you? A dragon, a griffon, pegasis? Earth pony, seahorse?” Darcy tried. _

_ “Nope. I was a unicorn. I was raspberry pink, had a midnight blue mane with sterling silver stripes, and amber eyes.” Darcy was about to die laughing. “And...the dragon in my house-” Her jaw dropped “-has mostly lilac scales but the ones on her head, stomach and spines are midnight blue.” _

_ “A dragon! You got a dragon!” Darcy cheered, standing up and almost spilling some Coke.  _

_ “She’s a Made-up Dragon, Darce, she was like...four or five!” _

_ Darcy shrugged. “I was too, you don’t see me effected.” _

_ “Just a few minutes ago you told me you killed twelve frat guys on your birthday after drugging them and had sex with them.” Morgan deadpanned. _

_ “Yes, your point?” Darcy asked. _

_ “Ugh!” Morgan groaned, grabbing a pillow and throwing it in Darcy’s face. “So, if you turned out so bad then imagine how a female dragon that breathes fire will do!” _

_ Darcy gawked. _

_ “Exactly!” _

 

_ ==CR== _

 

_ “Fishing is fun, innit kid?” _

_ “Yeah! I like it!” _

_ “Cool. Do you eat fish raw or cooked?” _

_ “I don’t know?” _

_ “Meh. We’ll find out.” _

_ “Auntie Killjoy, why is your cutiemark a knife?” _

 

_ ==CR== _

 

_ “You don’t get it Morgue, I have to do this.” _

_ “The bloodshed has to stop! I can’t keep living with the guilt you pass onto me!” _

_ “It’ll stop Morgue when the movie stops.” Darcy had gripped her sister’s arm, pulling Morgan close to her. “Or when you die.” _

 

_ ==CR== _

 

_ “Darcy you have to help me. I can’t keep Lilac safe any longer. Dominic has tried using her as bait so he could kill me-” _

_ “Someone tried to kill Lilac and he’s still alive!” Darcy yelled. _

_ “Yes, I don’t have the skills you have at stopping him. You have to help Darcy, Lilac needs her aunt as much as she needs her mother. Please, help me.” _

 

_ ==CR== _

 

_ Darcy has traded places with her sister. They were identical twins, so it was easy. Well identical down to the eyes. Morgan’s were gold, Darcy’s were purple. An easy fix with color contacts.  _

_ Dominic Chamberlin, the man who murdered the previous Queen of their people, wanted to kill Morgan too. Because he thought Morgan was the new Queen. _

_ Darcy would never let that happen.  _

_ “Would you like to have any last words?" _

_ “I hope you die like the rat you are.” _

_ “I’ll die like a King, you’ll die like the trash you are. That little Created dragon goes next.” _

_ “My sister knows about you. She won’t stop until you’re dead and rolling in your grave.” _

_ “Darcy Anderson? That little Created sitting in lock-up? That’s a laugh. She probably can’t open a pickle jar.” _

_ “I’m Darcy Anderson. My sister is Traveler Morgan Spencer. She’s done more in her life than you’ve done in your’s. She gets a little cranky when I’m not around, do you should be letting me go.” _

_ “Like I would believe that. My own wife gave that nonsense and I didn’t believe her.” _

_ “Yet another reason your marriage is failing.” _

_ “Ah, that teenage wit. I won’t miss it.” _

_ “You’ll miss somethin’ but it ain’t my wit. You’ll miss killing Morgan Spencer.” _

_ “Are you to tell me, you aren’t Morgan Spencer?” _

_ “Well, that depends on who you ask. Morgue will say I’m Darcy Anderson. Freddy will say I’m the Nightmare Girl. Jason won’t say anything because he never talks. My favorite killer, Chucky, will say I’m that Creepy Little Girl with the Creepy Eyes.” _

_ “Creepy eyes? Those amber eyes do creepy me out a little. No, wait, they just make me laugh.” _

_ “There’s this new thing called colored contacts. You’d be surprised what kind of stuff you can get at 2 in the morning for nothing. Actually, nothing’s a lie, it cost an arm and a leg.” _

_ “But not your arm or leg. It also cost you your head.” _

_ "Good-bye." Darcy whispered, thinking about the sister she was literally dying to save. _

_ The blade of the guillotine fell above her head. _

_ And then she slept. _

And then Cupid opened her eyes.


	16. The Lights Go Out

When the memories stopped, I noticed my cheeks were wet.

On instinct I slapped my own face.

_ Because Criers were slapped. _

That was my thing.

Like, Morgan always complained so much about people who cried in movies when people died. Because more people died while they cried. Also because emotions were twisted for my sister and I.

My sister. I had a sister.

A sister that took me in, raised me after I killed Mom and Dad. Morgan hated them too. A sister that saw how dark I was, how awful. She guided me to a path that summed up to:  _ “if you kill a killer, that leaves the same amount of killers on the world.” “Kill two.” _

George and Emily Anderson weren’t abusive, they were just cold. They signed me on for electroshock therapy all because they didn’t believe me, after I’d seen a murderer. Apparently the murderer I saw was ‘dead’ and also ‘not a plastic doll’. I had to be insane. So obviously being electrocuted was the answer.

Morgan broke me out.

She brought me home.

She ran off to find that killer doll, stop him before he killed anyone else. 

All while I killed Mom and Dad.

When Morgan came home to see me- purple eyes glittering in murderous delight- she knew she would be sticking by my side. She, who had traveled realities for over a century, knew I would be traveling with her now too.

And she did.

All the way until I was 42, and she was 190, and I betrayed her. 

She had to kill me.

Just like I had to kill my parents.

I brought myself back, only to try to kill my sister and have her kill me again.

The third time...I wanted to save her. From her own people. People with her same powers.

So many things came back with...confusing clarity.  _ How could I have forgotten this? What kind of person forgets their sister and niece? _

_ LILAC IS MY NIECE! _

_ HOLY SHIT! _

_ SHE HAD BEEN DRAWING HER DRAGON SELF, AND MY PEGASUS SELF! _

_ MY PEGASUS SELF WAS TURNED INTO A NIGHTMARE FOR PITCH! _

_ Why is that so funny? _

The ground beneath me still tried to howl at me. It sent back through me emotions that felt tainted. I pushed the emotions away. I was a Traveler too, it was weak in my blood but it was there. I belong in this world as much as my sister did. This world would  _ not  _ reject me. This reality may not want me here, but damn me again if I was going to leave my niece alone. 

Especially with that whore, Mrs Barclay- _ and fuck you universe for rubbing that in my face _ .

I was going to save her again.

Then I’d find Morgan and slap her. Chances were that she had something to do with me being here.

“Did you- did you see that?” Jack asked.  _ Jack Frost. I’m in Rise of the Guardians holy shit. This is awesome. _

“Did you see _ that _ ?” I held up my teeth. And wasn’t that just the weirdest phrase to say.

Baby Tooth shook her head at us, chittering a denial.

_ Holy shit I was given command over other living beings. _

_ Morgue was gonna lose her mind. _

“It-it was me!” Jack exclaimed in joy. He ran to Baby Tooth, lifting the small fairy in his hands. “I had a family! I had a sister!”

“Me too!” My wings flapped in excitement, only to send pain down my body.

_ Right...it broke on impact. _

Turning to my wings, I began the process of snapping them back in place.

“I saved her!”

“Me too!” I cheered. “Well I think I did. Meh she’ll be fine.” With a loud  _ snap _ my wing was back in the joint. I let out a relieved sigh. “Oh that’s better.” My wings flapped, no pain shooting up my body.

“That’s why you chose me.” Jack realized. Looking his way, I saw him looking up to the sky. More specifically the Moon. “I’m, I’m a Guardian.”

The Moon shines brighter on him.

A snort cane out of my mouth. More so when the Moon moved to me.

“I turned into  _ Legolas.” _ Came my realization. Dumbstruck, I laughed. “Of course I did. Why not Gimli? That would’ve been so much cooler.”

The Moon brightened.

“Yes. You have given me awesome powers, but I know my sister begged you to do it. That makes it less cool.” 

Jack came to my side. “What are you saying?”

“Doesn’t matter.” Came my brush off.

Baby Tooth tried to fly in the excitement. Instead, she barely flittered. Jack had the reflexes to catch her first. Not that I didn’t have the reflexes, I was just choosing not to do it.

Jack understood what I was saying. “We have to get out of here.” He went over go his staff. He grabbed the two halves of it.

A bright noise like shimmers went off behind me. Turning back I saw a bow resting on the side of the cave. It was different than my old bow, as Cupid. This one looked more...Elvish.

“Why, how nice.” The bow was flung in my back. My wings stretched wide.

There was a flash of blue and purple lights. 

We stood side by side as the lights faded.

Baby Tooth was placed-by Jack- in his tunic shirt. My wings flapped hard. Oh how I wish they were a dark red instead of white.

I flew above the cave, laughing down at Jack. “Come on, slowpokes! We got a Pitch to punch!”

Jack’s laughter echoed up.

 

==CR==

 

I teleported us to Pitch’s lair.

Unlike before, there wasn’t any chittering of the thousands of fairies. We’d stopped collecting teeth, and Easter was a major screw up, so I guess belief was going down for everyone. As Cupid had believers, I felt  _ some _ of it fade out. It was probably because I wasn’t a proper Guardian that I wasn’t wilting.

Jack was going from cave to cave, opening the locks. I went to my cherubs. Once again, coming to the stunning awareness that  _ I  _ was given  _ charge _ over  _ the lives of other people. _ Because when had  _ that _ ever gone right for me?

My cherubs chittered tiredly at me. 

“Come on, let’s go.” Jack encouraged the fairies.

“They can’t, Jack.” I called out to him.

He flew to my side. He saw my cherubs, all dropping like the fairies. “What’s wrong?!”

They chittered.

“None of you can fly?” Jack translated.

“Where’s the globe?” I asked Baby Tooth. The fairy sitting on Jack’s shoulder.

She pointed towards it. 

Jack understood once we saw the globe.  “The lights.”

They were fading...a  _ lot _ faster than was healthy for anyone magical. 

 

==CR==

 

Across the globe, Pitch was gloating.

“You’re all free to go!” He blasted to the terrified yetis and elves. He stood atop the dimmed globe. “We won’t be needing any Christmas toys this year, thank you! Nor ever again!”

One yeti sighed, as he’d just painted all the robots red.

 

==CR==

 

Jack went to globe. Myself, after nodding to my cherubs followed.

“They’re all going out...”

My eyes found the one in Charleston, where one light still shined bright. 

_ ‘Come on, Lilac.’ _ My hand tightened to my new bow.  _ ‘You’re a Stardust. You can do it.’ _

 

==CR==

 

Pitch was dancing on the globe. 

If you could _call_ those half assed moves dancing.

“Only seven left! Seven precious children who still believe in the Guardians with all their h-” Pitch laughed as he glared down at a light. “Make that, six.”

He stomped on it. The light gone once he lifted his foot.

The yetis watched on in horror.

The elves were working on ‘cookies’.

“Oo! Five!” Pitch cheered.

He stomped on another light.

“Four!”

He stomped on two at the same time.

“THREE!”

He stared at the remaining two lights. He clicked his fingers in a grand gesture for his crowning moment.

Only...

Only they stayed.

He narrowed his eyes.

“Two.” He snarled.

He saw the brighter Light, was one in a city on the East Coast. He vanished to it in a whirl of black sand. 

 

==CR==

 

_ ‘Knew you could do it, kid.’ _

Only two lights were shining bright. 

In a rush, Jack put together who that second light was.

“Jamie!”

I stared at her light. Apparently by looking I could  _ see _ her. 

_ And Mrs Barclay. _

_ Arguing. _

“Lilac!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m hoping for a much better year. 2018 was...a survival thing. Lot of near misses. All of your comments have been keeping this thing going, so don’t stop now!


	17. Her Last Light

Easter Sunday had...a lot of hitches.

Mrs Barclay’s lasted ‘boyfriend’ had left. That made the foster mother even more angry than usual. Though she still took it out on Lilac.

Lilac was drawing in a tiny corner of the room. She’d been drawing the same thing she had for two days- a black pegasus.

Seeing her drawing instead of actually listening, Mrs Barclay stormed up. Lilac flinched away, holding journal close to her chest.

“Now you listen here, you little rat!” Mrs Barclay snapped. Lilac  _ was _ freaking out, but she refused to cower from this woman. “You stay under my house, you follow my rules! Bedtime was at eight o’clock! It’s well past nine!”

“I don’t care!” Lilac screamed at her. “You’re not my  _ mother _ !”

“Your mother lost her mind!” Mrs Barclay raged back. “Just like that lunatic sister of hers!”

Lilac growled. She ran out of the house before she could bite Mrs Barclay’s ear off. With her dragon teeth, that was an actual worry.

 

==CR==

 

Lilac was hiding in the park, under the same tree she’d been at whenever I came to town.

Hamil flew up to me. He hugged my neck, chittering all about the past day. How he’d heard my call. He ignored it to watch Lilac. He admitted she’d had a nightmare, that it had turned into a black pegasus made out of sand. Lilac had been despondent all day, so much so that when no eggs could be found she wasn’t affected.

She still believed though.

She was so miserable, she’d lost so much. 

Yet she still believed.

_ In me. _

“Thank you, Hamil.” My feet touched the ground.

The Earth tried to fight against me, to fill me with the negative emotions as it had before. With a clench of my teeth, I held on.

Anderson’s show no submission. With the earth or anyone.

“For watching my niece.” My hand came up to the cherub, brushing his slackjaw. “You have no idea how much I’m grateful.”

Not staying for his reply, I walked up behind the tree.

Lilac was sketching. She was more of a painter, so her sketching was an odd sight.

Until I saw  _ what  _ she was sketching.

Me. 

Or rather, me as a Pegasus.

It was hard to tell, as she had done it black and white. You could see the dark of my fur, with the silver of my mane. 

If I didn’t know better, I’d say she was drawing the Nightmare she had created last night.

“You shouldn’t be out this late.” I chided. “Especially alone.”

Lilac didn’t flinch. She kept sketching, not even looking up at me. “Only my mom tells me what to do.”

“Well, I consider myself your Guardian, so I have more authority than your mother. If she can’t watch you, the closest relative should. That being me.” I argued, trying to keep the air light. “Though I have to say that woman is  _ gorgeous _ .”

“She has your face, Auntie.” Lilac remarked dryly.

“And whose decision was that? Her’s. She _ copied _ her face onto mine. If I look cute, it’s her fault.” I joked, though the tone fell flat.

Lilac wouldn’t look at me. She did pause in her coloring.

“Kid.” I spoke up. “Kid I need you to look at me- please.”

Lilac did. Slowly. Peering over the bangs she always had brushed over the side of her face. Honestly she had all the makings of an emo if she joined the Dark Side.

But she  _ saw me _ .

Saw her aunt.

_ Believed  _ in her aunt.

“Where’s your mom?” I asked. My voice far kinder than it had been for a long time.

Lilac sniffled, putting on a brave face. “She lost custody. Something about a psychotic break.” She sniffled again, wiping her nose on her jacket sleeve. “We’ve been here seven months. Seven months without my mom unless those- those people say it’s okay to see her! I’ve only seen her seven times.  _ Seven! _ Today was going to be eight but  _ apparently _ stupid Mrs Barclays didn’t think  _ I  _ could  _ handle it!” _

“Kid...” 

“And where were you?!” Lilac snapped at me. “Where were you, Auntie?! Mom’s been so sad since you- you  _ died _ ! Can’t you come back?! They’d let Mom come back if you came back!”

“Kid it’s not that simple-”

“SHUT UP!” Lilac screamed at me, stomping her foot in the dirt. Her dark blue eyes went serpentine, and I swear I saw smoke come out of her nose. “SHUT UP! JUST- JUST FIX MOM!” She started to sob now. The smoke vanished, the eyes too. Instead there were tears coming down her cheeks that changed to steam. “...I wanna go Home. I can’t go Home without Mom and she won’t go Home without you.”

Taking a deep breath, I waited to see if that was all she had to say. When it was clear she was just gonna start crying I flew up to her. That was when I pulled her close for a lackluster hug.

My niece buried her face in my cameo dress. She was making it wet with tears, but I didn’t particularly care for the dress.

“I miss you, Auntie.” Lilac sobbed.

Her broken voice caused me to fall to my knees, hugging her whole body into mine. “I know, kid, I know. I missed you too. So much. Even when I couldn’t remember you, I still had to see you.” My hand brushed down on her back. She shuddered in her sobs. “I’m an awful Guardian, aren’t I? This is supposed to be Morgue’s shtick.”

But Lilac kept sobbing.

She didn’t pull away.

I think...right now...it didn’t matter to Lipac who I was. Just that I was there.

_ ‘What a sap.’ _ I thought, running my fingers through her hair.  _ ‘Geez. Can’t you be a heartless monster like your aunt? It would save me a lot of trouble.’ _

There was a noise.

I pulled out an arrow from the quiver, aiming it towards my opponent. The arrow changed in color, changing from gold to a darkened purple. Lilac squeaked behind me.

Pitch stood there.

A legion of Nightmares behind him.

Pitch sneered victoriously at us. “One of the last two Lights.”

Lilac cowered behind me. She held tightly to the edge of my dress. I kept my arrow steady on him. Because anybody that scared my niece must’ve been ready to die.

He took a step forward, so I let loose a purple arrow into his chest. He caught it before it could mark.

“That was a warning. The next won’t be.” I warned.

Pitch grinned wide, showing off his fangs. Lilac’s dragon smile had more pointed teeth. “Such devotion, to a creature who only knows how to spread _ pain _ .”

“So you should be afraid for your kneecaps right now.” I remarked.

“She can’t protect you.” Pitch told Lilac.

I fired another purple arrow at his leg. Pitch grunted in pain when it hit. ‘ _ Oooh that’s a useful new trick.’  _ The area around his knee became purple before he tore out the arrow.

“Talk to my niece again- and I’ll make you suffer.” I warned him, docking another purple arrow.

“Niece?” Pitch repeated with interest. Lilac curled up behind my back. “What a development.”

“I used to be afraid of my past.” I admitted. “Afraid that I would be just as worse as you, before. It made me so scared to even have my teeth, my memories.” I grinned at Pitch, making it wide to show off teeth. I’m sure my purple eyes-and they had to be purple, because I was me- were glinting with crazed intent. “Turns out I was wrong. I’m not as bad as you.” I grabbed an arrow, pulling it back. “I’m  _ worse. _ ”

The purple arrow loosed. Pitch grabbed it, missing the three I fired right after. He yelled in pain.

“I’ve killed more people in my lifetime, Pitch, than there are years in your life.” I warned him. He glared up at me, eyes of amber- _ but not the right kind of amber. Her amber was like gold or whiskey or Sandy’s sand-  _ going wide at my revelation. “So when I say don’t talk to my niece or you’ll suffer,  _ I mean it. _ Because I have killed things more powerful than a dethroned Nightmare King.”

With that I wrapped my arm around Lilac’s body, pulling her close to me.

“Kid hold on!” I shouted. Lilac’s hands wrapped around me in a hug. I teleported us out of there.

 

==CR==

 

We landed in the Bennett’s front yard.

Lilac blinked in confusion. “That was...weird flying.”

“That was angel flying.” I explained, going up towards the window. “Like, from  _ Supernatural. _ Teleporting. Or it’s like...I don’t know. Morgue does the science explanations. And magic ones.”

The dragon snickered. “I like angel flying.”

“You would. Morgue’s kid.” I snorted, messing with her hair. “Don’t get used to it. I’m not an auntie-taxi.”

She giggled.

“Shut up.”

She continued to giggle.

“You know what? Forget it. You’re worse than your mother.” I scolded.

“No I’m not.” Lilac giggled.

“Yes you are. Morgue laughs at  _ everything.  _ Just...every single thing. Like a hyena.” I explained. Lilac continued to laugh. “Whatever.” 

Up at Jamie’s window, Jack was bringing a snow bunny to life. He set it off to hop around Jamie’s room.

Lilac gasped. “Auntie can you do stuff like that?”

“No...I’ve got cherubs.”

“What’s a cherub?” Lilac asked, fave squinted up in confusion.

I blinked. “Hamil.” The cherub floated out of my hair, flying to the awed Lilac. “There. Cherub.”

“This is so cute!” She squeaked. She held Hamil in her hands. “You are so cute!”

Hamil puffed his chest. My eyes rolled.

“Auntie, can we go see?” Lilac asked. She pointed up to Jamie’s window. Hamil chittered the same thing.

_ ‘Damn...she’s perfected the puppy eyes.’ _

“Whatever.” My arm stretched out. Lilac latched onto into. Hamil flew to my shoulder, chittering.

“What’s he saying?” Lilac asked as we flew to the window.

“You don’t speak Squirrel?” I asked, gawking. Lilac shook her head. “You disgrace. Everyone in our family can speak squirrel.”

“But there’s only three of us.”

“Still applies.” I argued, lowering Lilac in front of the window. It was snowing inside now. Hamil pushed the window open so we could hear.

“Snow?” Jamie asked. Jack was floating over the desk, not noticing us at the window. “Jack Frost?” He whispered.

Jack tensed. “Did he just say-?”

Jamie sat up on his bed. “Jack Frost.”

Lilac pulled on my dress sleeve. I leaned down. “Auntie, he’s floating.”

“He can do that. Hush.”

“It’s good he is. He’s not wearing shoes.”

“Kid,  _ hush.” _

“He said it again. He said-” Jack was practically hyperventilating in disbelief. “You said.”

The boy turned around. His jaw dropped, his eyes went wide. “Jack Frost.”

“That’s right! But-but that’s me! Jack Frost! That’s my name! You said my name!” Jack cheered, not getting the point. “Wait, can you hear me?” I thunked my head on the window pane. “Can you... Can you see me?” Another thunk. “He sees me. He sees me!”  _ “Auntie you’ll give yourself a bump.” _

“You just made it snow.”

“I know!”

“In my room.”

“I  _ know _ !”

“You’re  _ real _ ?”

“Yeah! Who do you think brings you all the blizzards and snow days, and you remember when you went flying on that sled the other day?!” Jack asked.  

“That was you?” Jamie gawked.

“That was me!”

“Cool!”  _ I’m counting that as a pun. _

“Right?!”

“But what about the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy I mean-” Jamie asked.

“Real-real-real! Every one of us is real!” Jack answered. “And-and Cupid too.”

“I knew it!”

His mom’s voice came from downstairs. Hamil squeaked, hiding in my hair. “Jamie, who are you talking to?”

“Um...Jack Frost.” Jamie called back.

The mom laughed as she replied. “...okay.”

_ ‘If Lilac has said that to Morgue, not only would Morgue believe her, she’d ask to join.’ _ I found myself smirking.  _ ‘Nosy bitch.’ _

“Can we go do things now?” I asked, leaning in from the window.

Jack cheered. “Cupid he can see me!”

“Great! Let’s go.” I deadpanned.

“Hey Mister Frost!” Lilac leaned in. She waved her hand to the pale spirit.

Jack’s eyes widened. “You see me too?” Lilac nodded. Jack laughed in delight.

Jamie gasped. “You’re Cupid!” ‘ _ Oh joy. Now he can see me too.’ _ “You look like Legolas!”

“That was the idea.”

There was a loud crack of thunder. Lilac squealed, hugging my side. My hands went to my bow and a purple arrow.

A familiar sleigh could be heard up the road. Grinning, I began to slide down the roof. “Hey Lilac, wanna meet Santa?” Lilac was sliding down behind me-not very well.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally home and it. Is. GOOD!


	18. Lilac Meets the Guardians

I touched down to Earth, catching Lilac as she jumped off the roof. We ran towards the sleigh, Jack and Jamie behind us. 

The sleigh stopped just outside Jamie’s house. Tooth was holding North up. The reindeer had flown away already by the time I got there. 

“North! Are you okay?” Tooth gasped in concern.

“Is official. My powers are kaput.” North sighed.

“Look!” Tooth cheered. She pointed our way. “Cupid! Jack!” Tooth cheered. 

Jack flew to my side. Lilac continued to hide behind me. 

“Guys-!” Tooth tried to fly out of the sleigh. She fell to the floor. 

Jack rushed to her aid. I stayed in front of Lilac. “You okay?” He asked her.

Tooth smiled reassuringly. She stood on her two feet, albeit slouching. 

“What are you two doing here?” North asked, climbing down off the sleigh. He used his sword for a standing cane.

“Same as you.” Jack answered. He looked back, pointing towards the running Jamie.

Lilac peaked her head from around me.

“The last lights!” He blinked in confusion at Lilac. “That is who she is, yes?”

“Yeah. She is.” I warned, putting a protective hand over her shoulder. “Lilac Stardust.”

She beamed happily. “Hi Santa! I’m really excited to meet you, cause I knew you were real cause Mom and me made cookies every year and you always ate our cookies! Mom made them special for you and but we missed this year I’m sorry oh my I’m freaking out.”

“Should I introduce you to the Tooth Fairy?” I offered, grinning like a cat.

Lilac squeaked. “She’s beautiful!” She ran up to the fairy. “Your wings are so pretty. I would love to paint them in watercolor.”

_ ‘How did she make that sound unthreatening? However if  _ I  _ had said that Morgue would hit me over the head?’ _

“Wow! It _ is _ you! I mean it is you! I knew it wasn’t a dream.” Jamie cheered, as he finally approached us. He turned to smoke at Jack.

“Jack!” North realized in glee. “They see you!”

Lilac blushed. She hid against my side.

“Cupid! Oh this is good!” North cheered loudly.  _ Good thing parents don’t believe, or we’d be caught.  _

“Wait, but, where’s Bunny?”

“Did he-” My joke about dying fell flat at Lilac’s hopeful face. “-go home?”

North looked away sadly. “Losing Easter took its toll on all of us. Bunny most of all.”

A small, tiny, infinitesimal sized rabbit hopped out. 

There was a grin on my face. I turned my head so none of them would see.

“Oh...no...”

“A bunny!” Lilac cheered, rushing over to give Bunny a hug. The rabbit went along with it. Jack and I watched, struggling to hold back laughter. “He’s so cute!”

Jamie chuckled. “ _ That’s _ the Easter Bunny?”

“The what?” Lilac blinked.

“ _ Now _ somebody sees me!” Bunnymund spoke. Lilac squeaked, dropping him onto the sleigh wing. He waved a paw in her direction. “I mean, where were you about an hour ago, sheila?”

“I’m so sorry!” Lilac gasped, covering her red cheeks with her hands. She meant to holding him, not to the believing thing. “Auntie Killjoy why didn’t you say anything?!

I lowered the camera. “Because it was funny!” 

“Killjoy?” Bunnymund asked in delight.

“Watch it, half-pint. I can drop kick you and no one’s gonna bat an eye!” I warned him.

“Auntie...” North breathed out.

I beamed. “That’s my niece. Lilac Stardust.”

My niece was still flustered from before. “Hi.” She greeted them, still hiding behind me.

“Don’t worry kid. You’ll forget about this by therapy...I’m sure my sister will have given you more things to talk about.”

 

“What happened to him?” Jamie asked. His face was scrunched up in confusion. “He used to be huge and cool! And now he’s cute.” Jamie knelt down to the rabbit, scratching him behind the ear.

“Oh, that’s good.” Bunny purred. I snickered into my hand again.

Lilac grunted in exasperation, covering more of her reddening face with her hands.

“Did you two tell him to say that?” Bunny raged. He hopped towards us. I flew up, higher than him with  _ complete _ knowledge that this was a dick move. The rabbit decided to just smack at Jack. “That’s it! Let’s go! Me and you! Come on!”

“No! Actually he told me you were real.” Jamie stepped up to Jack’s defense. “Just when I started to think that maybe you weren’t.”

“He made you believe? In me?”

“I told Lilac nothing.” I admitted to the group. “Nah, I was content to let you all be forgotten. I can take on Pitch with one hand behind my back.”

“Auntie...”

“Alright...two hands.”

Lilac groaned.

The Guardians were smiling at us, fondness in all of their eyes. Mine rolled in annoyance.

A crack of thunder went off in the distance. There we could see a near hurricane of Nightmare sand.

“Speak of the king and he shall appear.” I remarked, grabbing an arrow to twirl it around my fingers.

“He’s really angry about those arrows, Auntie Killjoy.” Lilac commented, holding my hand.

I nodded, shrugging when everyone turned to look at me. “He was already at Lilac’s when I went to get her. He may’ve been shot with three arrows.”

“Three?” Lilac asked.

“The third was in a place I didn’t want you seeing.”

“Like...his  _ butt _ ?” Lilac whispered.

I snorted. “Yep. His butt.”  _ ‘Man, my sister has kept you pure.’ _

“Get Jamie and Lilac out of here.” Jack instructed.

“She gets hurt, I kill you all.” I informed, flying up after Pitch.

“Be careful!” North cautioned.

As we flew up, I grabbed more arrows in my hand.

“Cupid! Jack Frost! “ Pitch spat our way. He made himself a vortex of sand to push him towards us. “Let’s end this, shall we?”

Jack fired a blast of ice from his staff.

I fired five arrows, firing one by kicking it.

He blocked them with a gray hand. “Those little tricks doesn’t work on me anymore.” Pitch smacked us with the Nightmare sand.

I dodged it, dropping down from the sky. Jack was less lucky. 

When I flew down after him, Nightmare sand moved my way. I tried to block off the attack with arrows but it did nothing. It only made more pain as they hit my back.

 

==CR==

 

Lilac could see her aunt fighting Pitch. She wished she could help- that she’d thought to call her mom to tell her about what was going on. 

Bunny was leading their group through town. Lilac and Jamie were kept in the middle of the three Guardians, who kept the children out of the shadows. 

“Quick, this way this way!” Bunny suggested. “Dead end. Other way other way!”

Lilac looked back up at her aunt. Her white wings had shifted to a darker shade.

A familiar dark shade of red.

 

==CR==

 

My blood red wings snapped out wider. 

_ I missed being blood red. _

Still, I wasn’t able to control my returned wings before crashing into a trash bin. On top of Jack.

“Jack!”

“Auntie!”

Lilac ran to my side. I rolled off Jack. Lilac helped me to my feet.

“Your wings.” Lilac remarked.

I smirked, tired  from the attack. A wing stretched around to boop Lilac’s head. She giggled at it. 

Tooth gasped. “What happened?”

“Nightmare sand mixed with my arrows.” Came my answer, because it was hard to explain that these were the wings I should’ve woken up with three months ago. Because blood red suited me better.

“That was good try, Jack! A for effort!” North encouraged as Jack stood up.

“Effort starts with an e.” Lilac corrected.

“E for excellence?” I tried.

Jack groaned. “He’s stronger. We can’t beat him.” I stepped on the end of his stick, snapping it up. Jack caught it in his hand. He used it to balance himself, leaning on it for support.

Pitch’s chuckle filled the alleyway. Lilac yelped, hiding behind my back. “All this fuss over one little boy and girl. And still they refuse to stop believing.”

Some Nightmares were exposed by the lightning. I smirked at him, not hiding my glee at a proper hunt.

“Very well. There are other ways to snuff out a light.” Pitch pointed out as he burst the nearby street lights.

Lilac curled to my side. I pulled an arrow out, holding it in my hand. 

“If you want them, you’re gonna have to go through me!” Bunny threatened.

A shadow of a hand appeared. It curled at Bunnymund’s paws.

“Look how fluffy you are!” Pitch laughed. “Would you like a scratch behind the ears?”

The former Easter Bunny ran into North’s hand. “Don’t you even think about it!” Bunny warned.

I stomped on his fingers. Pitch yelped in the distance.

He rode in on a black Nightstallion. “I can’t tell you how happy it makes me to see you all like this.” Pitch smiled proudly, glaring my direction especially. “You look  _ awful. _ ”

While I ran through a bunch of good one-liners, looking for one that was PG, the moment passed. Such a shame.

“Auntie...”

I looked down at my niece, who was starting to hyperventilate at my side. Just like her mom...just like her mom did when I left her in the dungeon.

“Kid.” I knelt down to Lilac’s side. Resting my hand on her shoulder, I gripped it in assurance. She was shaking under my hand. An idea came to me- an idea that took me so long to get I deserved to be laughed at if I ever see Morgan again. “My arrows never worked on you. No matter how many I fired you never changed. You wanna know why?”

Lilac- still shaking- nodded.

“Because you’re a Stardust. You are  _ strength.  _ Everything about you is strong, you see about this world, about all worlds huh?” Lilac nodded, swallowing loudly. “That’s what my centre is- strength. When I died, it took strength to carry it out. But I did it. For you and your mom. Strength just looks like pain from the other side.”

Standing up, I aimed an arrow in Pitch’s direction. “Except this time. This time, I shoot arrows to  _ kill _ .”

Pitch laughed, as if not believing my capable.

My smile disproved that.

“Jack, I’m scared.” Jamie whimpered quietly.

“I know, I know. But you’re gonna be alright.” Jack assured, kneeling at Jamie’s side. “We’re gonna have a little fun, instead.” He paused in realization. Honestly if it wasn’t so important I’d hit his head with a wing to move him along. “That’s it. That’s my center.”

“My center is soft and squishy!” Lilac squeaked. “And I’m not looking to be squished!”

“So what do you think, Jamie? And you, Lilac, do you believe in the Boogiema-”

A snowball hit his face.

It threw off the aim of the arrow. It hit the stallion’s face, changing the head to something purple.

Jamie and Lilac chuckled.

Lilac clapped for me.

“I warned you.” I reminded him, floating in the air inches off the ground. “You just declared _ war _ .”

Jack got together enough gear for sledding. “Now let’s go get your friends.” He cheered to Jamie.

Lilac hugged my front. I held her with one hand, flying up with my wings.

As we escaped on a trail of snow, I waved in Pitch’s direction.

“BYE!” I cheered that way.

His growl followed us.

It made Lilac and I laugh.

 


	19. Believe, Not Fear

As we escaped from Pitch, Jack came up with a genius plan. 

Jack led the group on the streets of Burgess. Each sledding on their own makeshift sled. Lilac was holding onto a trash can lid, sitting in between my legs. She cheered as we made our way through town.

“Yeah! Come on!” Jack laughed, flinging the staff about to basically create a roller coaster out of ice. The wind was at our backs, propelling us forward when we really should’ve stopped blocks ago.

“Whoa! Cool!” Jamie shouted loudly.

Lilac cheered still.

As we zoomed by the houses, Jack made his own little stops. He was picking up Jamie’s friends, I knew. Still didn’t stop me from having fun with Lilac.

I stood up on my feet, using them to control the sled. It curved us harder into the turns, making us spin as Lilac and I zoomed by. My own wings would push us forward also.

After a particularly harsh turn, Lilac shouted that she wanted a new sled-partner. She immediately retracted it by hugging tightly to my leg. Sentiment, ugh. 

That tough girl-Cupcake-joined us. I showed off my skills by firing an arrow into her sled. With a rope I connected it to mine, making more dramatic turns and spins which made Cupcake’s sled copy. Cupcake went  _ insane  _ laughing about it.

When Jack took Jamie up to help those other kids, I picked up Lilac to put her on my shoulders. She screamed laughing as we dashed on the makeshift-sled race. 

Then came the twin boys’ house. North had two presents ready-two sleds we’d collected in the way for them. I had an arrow ready, firing it so it could push open the window. North tossed the presents up. 

“Merry Christmas!” North cheered as the boys walked to the window.

“Happy Easter!” Bunnymund shouted up.

“I shoot arrows for fun!” I cheered, spinning myself and the sled. Lilac yelled in delight, gripping tighter to me.

“Don’t forget to floss!” Tooth yelled up.

There friends dashed by behind us. The twins didn’t pause another second.

Soon we had all the kids down. Lilac was controlling the sled now, making it move in simple but fun ways. I sat behind her, letting her have her fun.

“Yeah!”

“Jamie you were right!”

“The Easter Bunny’s real!”

“And the Tooth Fairy!”

“And Santa!”

“And Cupid!” Cupcake laughed

“They’re all real!”

“Woohoo!” Lilac threw her arms up as another turn came.

I copied her, howling.  

 

==CR==

 

The wind stopped pushing us on a quiet street. 

Well quiet, except for the wave of Nightmares.

Other than that, normal.

The Guardians all climbed off their sleds. The ice path had stopped as the wind did, so that was that. 

Jack-myself beside him-led the odd mixed pack forward. He was gawking in horror at the wave. I was grinning in delight.

The skinny blond child charged forward, still cheering in excitement. The cheering stopped as he saw the wave. He ran back behind us. I snorted when he did so.

“You think a few children can help you?” Pitch shouted down from atop his wave. “Against this!”

He showed off the other Nightmares, all of them making a slow crawl to the city. 

I had to fight back a giddy laugh.

At Jack’s side, North tried to lift up his sword. It fell-the kids believed in him but they were losing faith at the encroaching horde.

Lilac shuffled to hide behind me. 

I stepped aside, taking away her hiding place. She squeaked. “Lilac. They’re only nightmares. Remember to be strong.”

She shivered, curling her arms around her body. She stared up at the dark clouds, blue eyes sparkling with withheld tears. “I don’t feel strong.”

“Exactly!” Lilac gave me a  _ ‘are you really as stupid as mom always says you are’  _ look. “You prove your strength when you’re scared.”

She swallowed. 

“They’re just bad dreams, Jamie.” Jack assured a terrified Jamie.

“And we’ll protect you, mate.” Bunnymund promised, despite the fact that even  _ I  _ could crush him under my boot if I was so inclined. 

“Aww, you’ll protect them.” Pitch mocked. “But who will protect  _ you _ ?”

My hands tightened to fists.

They loosened when Lilac and Jamie took protective stances in front of us.

“I will!” Lilac shouted, in a very  _ ‘I will take the Ring to Mordor!’ _ sort of way. She proudly stood in front of the Guardians, probably glaring hotly at Pitch.

“I will.” Jamie agreed.

One by one, the other kids moved to stand beside them. 

“I will.” Cupcake nodded. 

“I will.” The twin boys agreed.

“And me.” Pippa joined in beside Jamie.

“I’ll try.” Monty admitted as he walked up.

I gave him a fist bump. Monty beamed from it.

Jamie and Jack exchanged a brief nod, though Jack was stunned by their decision.

Lilac hadn’t looked back. She continued to glare down Pitch Black. 

“Still think there’s no such thing as the boogeyman?” He taunted.

There was a loud crackle of lightning. A wave of Nightmares ran down the street way towards us.

“I do believe in you.” Jamie admitted as it got closer. “I’m just not afraid of you.”

“I’ve  _ never  _ been scared of  _ you _ .” Lilac revealed herself.

She and Jamie held up out their hands as the wave rushed forward. The moment the black sand touched them it burst into streams of gold.

The kids all cheered in excitement as the golden sand dashed around the city. It did what Sandy’s sand always did. 

And it was like that sand-the reminder of our fallen friend-that cemented the belief in the Guardians.

Tooth was the first to recover. Her wings extended out. They fluttered at hummingbird pace. She flew up off the ground, swirling over the heads of the kids.

“Yeah, Tooth Fairy! Whoa!” Cupcake cheered loudest. 

North was next. He raised up his swords, yelling in delight.

Monty applauded. “Whoa, yeah!”

“No! Get them!” Pitch yelled at his Nightmares from the building top he was perched on now. “Do your jobs!”

I flew up. “Well come on then, scaredy cat!” I shouted his direction. “Unless you’re too scared!”

Pitch growled in rage.

Below me, Bunny had his paws crossed. “Oh yeah, come on, come on!” Then he saw the Nightmares. “Oh, crikey!” He hopped off.

I pulled out arrows. Each changed to purple once I took them out from the quiver. With waiting for the others, I began firing them out at the Nightmares.

As North charged with his yetis, I watched as a Nightmare caught up with Bunny. 

“I’m just a bunny!” He yelled before hiding under a car. The Nightmare pulled him out, revealing a rabbit the size of a kangaroo. “G’day, mate!” He kicked the Nightmare’s face. 

I would’ve watched more except a Nightmare ran my way. Three arrows to the face shut it up.

Pippa cheered as the Nightmare faded away. I smirked at her, closing to her side. “Wanna help?”

“Yeah!” Pippa nodded, eyes wide in excitement.

I docked another arrow, firing it at another Nightmare. “You saw what happened when Lilac and Jamie touched it. Just copy them!” Pippa saluted me, running to her friends.

She made it to Cupcake first. Pippa told her what I did, making Cupcake y’all out a loud battle cry that got the other kids charging.

The first Nightmare they touched burst into gold.

I looked up in Pitch’s direction.

An evil grin spread on my face.

 

==CR==

 

Jack blasted ice at Pitch. It knocked down more Nightmares. When Pitch stepped back I fired at arrow at his back. He howled in pain.

He turned to glare at me. I waved my fingers at him.

He charged his Nightmare at me. Jack jumped- sending another blast of ice at it. 

I flew up, doing a backflip onto another roof. There were Nightmares coming up from all sides. If one got close, I fired arrows at it. Jack stood at my back, doing the same with his ice. 

Pitch had apparently tried to attack us with a blast of pure nightmare sand. Tooth flew by, dispersing it. 

“Thanks, Tooth!” Jack yelled as I shot another horse. He and I focused on the horses while the Guardians converged on Pitch.

Bunnymund popped out from a chimney. “Ho, ho, HO!” He yelled before throwing boomerangs. It took out five Nightmares.

Pitch tried to escape them- only to be met by North and his swords.

I flew down, using an arrow in hand to slice at Pitch’s arm. He yelled in pain. 

The others were giving their own attacks. Each of us bringing Pitch down another level.

 

==CR==

 

Lilac traced Dream Sand with her hand. She loved feeling it between her fingers. She could  _ feel _ the good dreams from the Sand, feel the memory of happiness in a dream dancing under her skin. 

“Look at that!” One of the other boy’s from town was saying. He was showing off how the Sand curled around his hand.

“I got it.” Jamie realized suddenly. Lilac turned to him, confused. His friends were the same. “I know what we have to do! Guys, come on!”

Jamie started running off, his friends following.

Lilac looked over to the Guardian fight. She saw her aunt- dressed in battle greens with her bright blonde hair flying about. She was firing purple arrows at Pitch- dodging every attack with her fast moves and thinking.

She followed after the Burgess kids.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for being late! I got caught up in work and school. All the love this story has been getting us keeping me writing! Don’t stop now y’all! We’re so close!


	20. Good Morning, Mister Sandman

Pitch was putting up a good fight- I’d given him that. Though like anyone with a brain for war could tell you, he was leading us away to a place where _ he _ could control the fight. Why the others hadn’t noticed our fight suddenly ending up in a darkened bus lot was anyone’s guess.

“It’s over Pitch! There’s no place to hide.” Jack warned.

Except Pitch, like all before him, just fucking  _ grinned _ at us.

He dissolved into the shadows. The other Guardians jumped to their guards, looking at the shadows of him along the walls. I stood my ground, pretending to pay attention but keeping an arrow docked. When he appeared behind Jack with the axe, I’d be ready.

“Cupid, look out!” Bunnymund yelled.

Turning around I saw Pitch holding the axe above my head.

_ Well wasn’t that a change. _

_ And a disappointment _

_ I would’ve looked so badass if I turned at the same moment he showed up behind me _

_ Damn asshole _

_ Ruining my badassery _

_ You’ll die for that _

I pulled the arrow off the bow. Pitch raised the axe higher, ready to drop it.

A golden whip grabbed his arm, keeping him from dropping the axe on my head.

_ Okay...cool...badass...but it’s interrupting my vengeance so I hate it. _

My own fist was about to stab the arrow into his stomach. To my disappointed the whip dragged Pitch away- over the buses.

Suddenly, I remembered the rest of the movie. The scenes that Morgan had cried- well cried as much as me or her  _ could _ cry, which was not at all, but her eyes watered a bit- at, grabbing my arm because had I  _ seen _ that?! The joy on her face at the sight of all the Guardians coming together to kick ass.

More importantly, I remembered that my arrow hadn’t killed him.

Death should be mourned.

Unless caused by my hand, in which case it should be praised.

I never mourned anything.

And Pitch had made me  _ mourn _ a kill.

_ His _ kill.

Done by  _ my _ blade.

I don’t _ mourn. _

Ever.

Now, it was a kill made undone.

It made a smirk come to me, because now I had more reason than before to have fun.

Flying over the buses, I saw Pitch being raked across the coals towards a swirling golden cocoon. That made me grin wider. I followed Pitch, not caring or watching if the others followed.

The Nightmare King was brought to the edges of the cocoon. A shape was beginning to take form in the center of the cocoon, becoming brighter and brighter the more golden sand was poured into it.

A quick glance to my right showed all the children, dashing around the streets to hit as many Nightmares as they could. Lilac herself was running with all the speed of her true form. Each touch to black sand left gold- she smiled and laughed loud enough that it echoed on the street.

The cocoon flared it’s brightness.

The Sandman stepped out.

I cheered, hollering and spinning mid-air in delight. Behind me, the Guardians and Jack cheered too.

Across the way, the Sandman scolded Pitch with a wagging finger. He uppercut Pitch on the jaw, sending him soaring up and up and up. Sandy kept a hold of him by the whip, still tied around Pitch’s arm.

The kids must have finally noticed the glowing cocoon. They all walked towards it, gawking at the golden sand that continued to stretch out beyond us.

It was like just the return of Sandman gave him back all his powers- which he used without hesitation. His golden sand moved beyond the city-beyond the horizon as I could see- to all the kids who were asleep. Or at least all that Sandy could reach.

The Guardians were standing taller at that thought. Tooth’s wings fluttered with more life. Bunnymund was standing taller-didn’t think it was possible, but go figure. North was hollering with more jolly than I’d ever seen (keep in mind, I’ve seen Morgan Spencer get a new book about werewolves) in one go. 

The kids ran up to Sandy. “Whoa! The Sandman!” They cheered.

Sandy made himself a bowler hat, tipping it to the kids. Jamie waved back. Lilac curtsied- as if she thought it was the proper reply to a hat tipping. Then again, her mom was Morgan Spencer and I was her aunt. There was a good chance we forgot how to tell her nonsense like that.

Anyway, it didn’t matter to the kids. They kept on chattering in excitement at the Guardian given form before their eyes.

The whip holding Pitch went _ boink _ . No doubt it’s bee stretched to it’s limit. Sandy glanced up the whip with distaste. He cracked it down. Pitch soared toward so the ground- much faster than he’d gone off it.

Pitch hit the ground so hard he bounced off it, slamming face down  _ twice _ onto the snow and hard ground beneath it.

The Guardians went to Sandy, greeting him like they hadn’t just come from his funeral. Which was just yesterday morning.

“Welcome back, old friend!” North cheered. He hoisted Sandy up in the air, which made Sandy laugh. 

“Sandy.” Jack greeted, stunned.

“Oh, Sandy. You’re alright!” Tooth flew to Sandy’s side, giving him a hug that was returned.

Bunnymund joined in on the hug. “Sandy, come here!”

“Yeah!”

“Mate, you are a sight for sore eyes!” Bunnymund cheered as the hug came to a close.

I stood to the side, glaring down at Pitch. My smirk had only gotten wider as I watched butterflies fly about his head. 

A sudden idea came to me. Walking to his side, I touched a butterfly with one of my purple arrows.

The sand corrupted- much like it would if Pitch himself had touched them. They shifted from gold to purple, the butterflies changing to moths. Or, they changed to Mothra. All in all, I loved it.

Sandy began to ascend, to send out his Dreamsand to all the kids of the world. I didn’t give it much attention. Instead I looked over at Lilac. She had an expression of awe, watching the sand stretching out around.

Now I get why Morgan always brought a camera with her.

So she could take photos of things like that.

_ Huh. _

_ Finally getting a hang of this whole...emotion thing. _

_ This is...it’s good...yeah. _

_ Good. _

 

**==CR==**

**AN: Also, can’t believe I missed this, I’ve officially published more than 1 million words on this site! WOOHOO!!**

**Thanks to Pixiecropse for following**

Pitch was putting up a good fight- I’d given him that. Though like anyone with a brain for war could tell you, he was leading us away to a place where _ he _ could control the fight. Why the others hadn’t noticed our fight suddenly ending up in a darkened bus lot was anyone’s guess.

“It’s over Pitch! There’s no place to hide.” Jack warned.

Except Pitch, like all before him, just fucking  _ grinned _ at us.

He dissolved into the shadows. The other Guardians jumped to their guards, looking at the shadows of him along the walls. I stood my ground, pretending to pay attention but keeping an arrow docked. When he appeared behind Jack with the axe, I’d be ready.

“Cupid, look out!” Bunnymund yelled.

Turning around I saw Pitch holding the axe above my head.

_ Well wasn’t that a change. _

_ And a disappointment _

_ I would’ve looked so badass if I turned at the same moment he showed up behind me _

_ Damn asshole _

_ Ruining my badassery _

_ You’ll die for that _

I pulled the arrow off the bow. Pitch raised the axe higher, ready to drop it.

A golden whip grabbed his arm, keeping him from dropping the axe on my head.

_ Okay...cool...badass...but it’s interrupting my vengeance so I hate it. _

My own fist was about to stab the arrow into his stomach. To my disappointed the whip dragged Pitch away- over the buses.

Suddenly, I remembered the rest of the movie. The scenes that Morgan had cried- well cried as much as me or her  _ could _ cry, which was not at all, but her eyes watered a bit- at, grabbing my arm because had I  _ seen _ that?! The joy on her face at the sight of all the Guardians coming together to kick ass.

More importantly, I remembered that my arrow hadn’t killed him.

Death should be mourned.

Unless caused by my hand, in which case it should be praised.

I never mourned anything.

And Pitch had made me  _ mourn _ a kill.

_ His _ kill.

Done by  _ my _ blade.

I don’t _ mourn. _

Ever.

Now, it was a kill made undone.

It made a smirk come to me, because now I had more reason than before to have fun.

Flying over the buses, I saw Pitch being raked across the coals towards a swirling golden cocoon. That made me grin wider. I followed Pitch, not caring or watching if the others followed.

The Nightmare King was brought to the edges of the cocoon. A shape was beginning to take form in the center of the cocoon, becoming brighter and brighter the more golden sand was poured into it.

A quick glance to my right showed all the children, dashing around the streets to hit as many Nightmares as they could. Lilac herself was running with all the speed of her true form. Each touch to black sand left gold- she smiled and laughed loud enough that it echoed on the street.

The cocoon flared it’s brightness.

The Sandman stepped out.

I cheered, hollering and spinning mid-air in delight. Behind me, the Guardians and Jack cheered too.

Across the way, the Sandman scolded Pitch with a wagging finger. He uppercut Pitch on the jaw, sending him soaring up and up and up. Sandy kept a hold of him by the whip, still tied around Pitch’s arm.

The kids must have finally noticed the glowing cocoon. They all walked towards it, gawking at the golden sand that continued to stretch out beyond us.

It was like just the return of Sandman gave him back all his powers- which he used without hesitation. His golden sand moved beyond the city-beyond the horizon as I could see- to all the kids who were asleep. Or at least all that Sandy could reach.

The Guardians were standing taller at that thought. Tooth’s wings fluttered with more life. Bunnymund was standing taller-didn’t think it was possible, but go figure. North was hollering with more jolly than I’d ever seen (keep in mind, I’ve seen Morgan Spencer get a new book about werewolves) in one go. 

The kids ran up to Sandy. “Whoa! The Sandman!” They cheered.

Sandy made himself a bowler hat, tipping it to the kids. Jamie waved back. Lilac curtsied- as if she thought it was the proper reply to a hat tipping. Then again, her mom was Morgan Spencer and I was her aunt. There was a good chance we forgot how to tell her nonsense like that.

Anyway, it didn’t matter to the kids. They kept on chattering in excitement at the Guardian given form before their eyes.

The whip holding Pitch went _ boink _ . No doubt it’s bee stretched to it’s limit. Sandy glanced up the whip with distaste. He cracked it down. Pitch soared toward so the ground- much faster than he’d gone off it.

Pitch hit the ground so hard he bounced off it, slamming face down  _ twice _ onto the snow and hard ground beneath it.

The Guardians went to Sandy, greeting him like they hadn’t just come from his funeral. Which was just yesterday morning.

“Welcome back, old friend!” North cheered. He hoisted Sandy up in the air, which made Sandy laugh. 

“Sandy.” Jack greeted, stunned.

“Oh, Sandy. You’re alright!” Tooth flew to Sandy’s side, giving him a hug that was returned.

Bunnymund joined in on the hug. “Sandy, come here!”

“Yeah!”

“Mate, you are a sight for sore eyes!” Bunnymund cheered as the hug came to a close.

I stood to the side, glaring down at Pitch. My smirk had only gotten wider as I watched butterflies fly about his head. 

A sudden idea came to me. Walking to his side, I touched a butterfly with one of my purple arrows.

The sand corrupted- much like it would if Pitch himself had touched them. They shifted from gold to purple, the butterflies changing to moths. Or, they changed to Mothra. All in all, I loved it.

Sandy began to ascend, to send out his Dreamsand to all the kids of the world. I didn’t give it much attention. Instead I looked over at Lilac. She had an expression of awe, watching the sand stretching out around.

Now I get why Morgan always brought a camera with her.

So she could take photos of things like that.

_ Huh. _

_ Finally getting a hang of this whole...emotion thing. _

_ This is...it’s good...yeah. _

_ Good. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also, can’t believe I missed this, I’ve officially published more than 1 million words on this site! WOOHOO!!


	21. Let The Good Times Roll

Across the hill, another horse was running to Lilac’s side.

I watched as it changed to gold beneath her fingertips. She was happy to be helping the people. Her smile widened at each horse she touched, made golden. This was probably reminding her of home. The magical land of Equestria, full of ponies and unicorn and pegasi as far as that pink train could go.

Lilac was beaming with the kids. She was happy.

_ “Well it feels like I’ve opened my eyes again.” Morgan sang, dancing around their storage space. “And the colors are golden, and bright again.” Darcy was sharpening her knives with a whetstone. “There’s a song in my heart and I know I belong.” Morgan smiled at her sister. “It’s a better place since you came along.” _

_ Darcy threw a pillow at her sister’s head. Morgan laughed as she dodged. She continued to sing that stupid song. _

I watched my niece, smiling at the fond memories. Though I’d deny it if anyone asked. 

That other girl- Cupcake- touched a unicorn Nightmare. It changed into gold, prancing around Cupcake. She cheered in delight.

Soon, the other kids started having fun. Lilac was having more fun dancing in the strings of golden sand.

She grabbed some of it. It turned into a pair of fishing rods.

“Auntie!” Lilac cheered. She ran to me, holding one to me. “Fishing! We can go fishing!”

Despite the fact that I  _ really _ wanted to fish, I rolled my eyes. “Ugh! Do we  _ have  _ to?”

My niece pouted, looking genuinely upset that I said no. “But...I wanna-”

“Cause I’d rather  _ fly _ !” My wings spread out for flight.

Lilac’s eyes widened. She shrieked in delight as I scooped her up bridal style. As we flew, I rose above the giant creations made of Dreamsands. Lilac laughed. She stretched an arm out, petting a dinosaur on the head. She was happy to be flying beside them- as much as she had thought about fishing.

Though I spotted a group of Dreamsand fish, swimming in air.

Lilac saw my smirk. She was wise to be cautious. “Auntie...”

“BONZAI!” I dove down towards the school of fish.

Lilac screamed like she was on a rollercoaster.

“JAMIE DUCK!” Lilac cautioned.

The boy ducked into the snow just in time. Lilac caught a dreamfish in her arms, screaming. Except me, I was laughing.

Until a snowball hit me in the face.

Lilac and I crashed below. 

When I pushed myself to my feet, I saw Bunnymund laughing off to the side. 

So I grabbed some snow, and  _ launched _ it at him. It hit him square on the face. 

“Auntie!” Lilac complained as she got to her feet. “That wasn’t nice! He didn’t throw it!”

“All’s fair in war!” I countered. To probe my point, I threw a snowball at her. 

Lilac gasped in mock offense. “Oh! Oh! You’re gonna get it!” She warned up at me.

Which was just  _ too funny _ . That  _ my pacifist of a niece  _ was going to  _ fight me _ . I just tilted my head in innocence. “Oh, am I?” Came my teasing reply.

“I’m-I’m a Crusader, Auntie! We are beings of chaos and mayhem!” She warned, kneeling down to gather snow.

“Sure...sure.” In counter, I was making my own snowball. 

“I mean it!” She raised it to aim.

“I know, sweet face. I can still see some tree sap behind your ears.” I pointed out. “It really  _ did  _ go everywhere, didn’t it?”

“Auntie Killjoy!” Lilac whined. Then the snowball made impact on her shoulder. “Ugh! That’s cold!”

“It’s  _ snow _ .” I laughed back in argument. 

Lilac groaned in rage. She grabbed more snow, throwing it at my head. She missed by a yard.

 

==CR==

 

Across the park, Jack was watching all of the fun. He made snowballs for the kids and other Guardians. Everyone was having a good time.

“Your center?” North asked.

Jack turned to the Guardian of Wonder. “It took awhile, but I figured it out.” 

North smiled. He pulled something from his pocket, tossing it to Jack.

The winter sprite caught it with one hand. Jack looked down at the it. There was a small Russian doll, painted to look like Jack. 

Jack loved it. He clenched it tight in his fist, swearing to never let this go. To never forget his Center, or his friends.

He looked over to see Cupid- a friend who’d stood by him through all of this. She looked different than she had before. She was still blonde, still dressed like a LOTR elf, and still had the purple eyes. The differences were small, but they had a big impact.

Her wings- originally white as the snow Jack made- were now a dark red. Her golden arrows had changed to purple, the same shade as her eyes. She was standing on the ground, something Jack hadn’t realized she never did until Antarctica. She said it hurt to touch the ground- like it was spitting her back out every time. Now she was standing no problem.

But the biggest difference?

She was smiling.

At this sweet kid, who’d been calling her ‘auntie’ and throwing snowballs at her face. Cupid took those snowballs to the face, always throwing back ones twice as hard. Jack could see some family resemblance- they had the same nose, and maybe Cupid’s eyes had been that same blue when she was alive.

Jack smiled for his friend. He turned to North, just in time to see an elf throw a snowball at his head. The two boys laughed. They pointed at the elf when North turned to them. North burst out laughing, the laugh coming from deep in his belly.

“You’re all on naughty list.” He told them. “Bunny, think fast!” North grabbed a snowball, pelting Bunny with it.

Jack laughed. He wasn’t paying attention- stupid boy. He was pelted himself.

He turned, seeing a red faced Lilac and smug Cupid. She was tossing another snowball in her hands.

“S-sorry Mr Jack!” Lilac squeaked. She ducked behind her aunt. “She did it!”

Cupid grinned. “Betrayed by my own kind.” She tsked. “Shameful.”

“Oh yeah? We’ll see about that!” Jack made a snowball in his hand. He launched it at Cupid.

She protected her face with a wing. She used the other to fire the snowball. It sent Jack reeling back.

 

==CR==

 

_ The moth was flying down...down...down...close enough to Pitch that he heard the buzzing in his ears and the flapping of it’s wings and it’s  _ eyes _ were so  _ horrifying _ that he couldn’t  _ move _ \- it was going to tear right through him- _

Pitch shot upright. He groaned in the pain that was sent out his entire body. 

He saw purple glitter falling off his head. Cupid must have done this- he was sure of it. Sandy wasn’t the  _ type _ to give Nightmares. That had been Pitch’s game. 

_ “I’ve killed more people in my lifetime, Pitch, than there are years in your life.” _

Pitch startled to his feet. 

He heard it before he saw. Children laughing. Children playing.  _ Joy. _

It enraged him.

_ (It terrified him) _

“No.” Pitch exhaled, trying to make sense of everything. “You dare have fun in my presence!”

Unbeknownst to him, Cupid heard him. She flew up overhead so as to watch the spectacle. She had her dagger in hand, turning it between her fingers. She was smirking down at Pitch. Jack heard him too. He watched Pitch ran forward. 

“I am the Boogeyman!” Pitch ranted. “AND YOU WILL  **FEAR ME** !”

He tried to lash out at one of the children. The boy-

_ -passed- _

_ -through- _

_ -him. _

Pitch choked.

“Noooo!” Pitch screamed. “No.”

He ran off.

Unaware, that only one child had seen him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long I was doing...stuff.
> 
> Darcy (comes running in): SHE THREW ME DOWN THE STAIRS!
> 
> Me: Whaaaat? Nooooo.


	22. We Are Guardians

I missed hunting.

Never hunting animals, that was  _ mean _ . Animals were  _ precious. _

Hunting people was a proud skill. Gained from  _ decades _ of growing up beside Morgan Spencer. 

I hunted Pitch into the woods. Every now and again, I’d fire an arrow at a tree. He yelled in surprise, turning away from it. He was being herded. The best part was that he  _ knew it _ .

He made it to the pond. I show an arrow by his foot so he leapt onto the ice.

I was laying down on a cloud, using my wings to get around. Imagine swimming in a pool on a floatie, that’s what I looked like. The cloud was softer though.

Pitch ran into the solid form of North. He fell back on the ice in a flop.

My cloud lowered so that I was behind him. “Didn’t your mother ever tell you it’s rude to leave a party early?” I asked.

Pitch jumped again, flailing on the ice for all the good it was worth.

“Leaving the party so soon?” North asked.

“You didn’t even say goodbye.” Tooth remarked. She tossed a quarter into Pitch’s hand. 

“A quarter?”

Tooth punched him in the face. So hard a  _ tooth  _ flew out of his mouth.

I gave her the golf-applause.

“And that’s for my fairies.”

“Ooh.” Pulling out another arrow, I aimed it at Pitch’s heart. “I never  _ did _ get you back for my Cherubs...did I?”

This clearly was the breaking like for Pitch. He laughed desperately as he pushed himself to his feet. “You can’t get rid of  _ me _ ! Not forever! There will  _ always _ be  _ fear _ !”

“So what?” North countered. “As long as  _ one _ child believes,  _ we _ will be here to  _ fight _ fear!”

“Really? Then what are  _ they _ doing here?” Pitch countered, shaking grinning smugly.

The Nightmares appeared around the pond. Not the hundreds from last that made that wave. Nah, this was a pitiful handful in comparison. 

“They can’t be  _ my _ Nightmares, I’m not afraid.” North laughed.

“I think they’re kinda cute, in the right light.” I complimented.

“Looks like it’s  _ your _ fear they smell.” Jack pointed out to Pitch.

The Boogeyman flinched at it.

The Nightmares converged on him. 

I watched in delight as they swarmed him. Eventually there were enough of them that they could carry away with Pitch into the distance. He was screaming all the way.

The screams stopped after awhile.

Once they did, the sun began to shine.

 

==CR==

 

I lowered myself from the cloud as the morning sun began to shine. It was making lying on a cloud annoying.

The Guardians and their newest recruit were laughing in joy. I was looking down at my dagger, wondering how long I could get away with tossing it in the air before worrying about  _ ‘child safety’ _ .

“Are you ready now, Jack?” North asked from below. I peered over my shoulder at them. “To make it official.” The Yetis walked up. One holding up the Guardian’s book.

Jack nodded, looking braver than ever before.

“Then is time you take Oath.” North instructed. He stretched out his arm. The Yeti gifted the book to him. He flipped through the pages. I sat down on the ice.  _ ‘Will you,  _ Jack Frost _...vow to watch over the children of the world?’” _

Lilac walked up behind me. She sat beside me. She shivered- with good reason, she was still in her Easter clothes. And we’d kept her up all night. She leaned against me. Barely a second passed before I heard her snoring. My wing wrapped around her shoulders, protecting her from the cold.

I couldn’t move- Morgan had taught me the Eighth Deadly Sin was to wake a sleeping child. She’d nearly beaten me blue once when I almost woke up a kid she was babysitting. Add on that this was Morgan’s actual kid. I may be dead, but I didn’t want to test how far this deathlessness went if I woke up her kid.

That’s why I was letting her sleep on my shoulder.

No other reason.

_ Shut up. _

“ _ ‘To guard them with your life - their hopes, their wishes, and their dreams? For they are all that we have, all that we are and all that we will ever be.’ _ ” North recited.

Jack glanced over his shoulder towards the kids. “I will.”

“Then congratulations, Jack Frost- for you are now and forevermore...a Guardian.” North cheered. He turned to me. “Cupid-” He stopped at the sight of the sleeping Lilac.

“I can’t stand.” I whispered. My arm wrapped around Lilac, holding her closer. Only so she wouldn’t fall on the ice. That’s it. Nothing more.  _ Why are you asking so many questions?! Dammit you’re good at this! _ “She’s...it won’t work.”

North chuckled from deep in his belly. The others were more quiet, laughing all the same.

“Is okay.” North brushed off. “This is good- even better that you are protecting child!”

“Will you be quiet- do you have any idea what her mother will do if she knows we woke up her kid?” I whisper scolded him. “We will all die slow painful _ deaths! _ ”

This just made Jack laugh.

“Never thought I’d see you scared of something, birdie.” Bunny mocked.

“So isn’t the thing I’m scared of, like, twenty times scarier?” I pointed out.

Bunny realized that was a good point.

“ _ ‘Will you- _ ...eh, it’s just Cupid, yes?”

“...Cupid Stardust.”

Someone snorted. I glared at the Guardians, daring them to do it again.

_ Like _ hell _ I would ever admit it...but the name’s grown on me. _

“ _ ‘Will you,  _ Cupid Stardust... _ vow to watch over the children of the world?’” _ North asked. “ _ ‘To guard them with your life - their hopes, their wishes, and their dreams? For they are all that we have, all that we are and all that we will ever be.’ _ ”

My arm tightened around my niece’s waist.

Memories came to mind, growing up with Morgan Spencer. Being taught how to kill, finding purpose behind it. Stopping bad guys, being worse than them so they’d stop in fear of me.

Then I looked down at Lilac. I remembered all the times Morgan dragged me back into Life just for this kid. All the times she pushed me out of it for the same reason.

“I swear.” _ ‘I’ll do better this time.’ _

Everyone cheered. I winced. 

Lilac murmured to attention.

_ ‘...now. I’ll do better next time starting  _ now _.’ _

Lilac sniffled, wiping at her eyes with all the exhaustion of a child who had their first all nighter. “Auntie?” She murmured tiredly.

“Yeah?”

“Can we go Home?” She asked.

_ ‘Storyline...all the times I asked Morgan that, all the times  _ she _ asked that...Lilac you’re awesome.’ _

Her hand reached up to my wings. “These are pretty.”

“Yeah. Kinda are.” I mused. “Hadn’t given it thought.”

Lilac hummed. She snuggled deeper against my side. Everyone was still cheering around us. “Can we go Home  _ now _ ?”

That time I couldn’t help but laugh.

That was when North scooped the two of us up. I yelped. Lilac started to laugh- though she was still drowsy from her almost-nap.

“Klasno!” North cheered.

“PUT ME DOWN!” I ordered.

Lilac laughed louder.

Bells could be heard overhead.

North put us down so he could see it. Lilac hugged my waist, looking at it with my wing curled around her.

“You guys, look!”

“That’s Santa’s sleigh.”

Lilac’s hand held mine. “It looks better flying.”

I squeezed back.

It descended onto the icy pond. Lilac immediately ran over to see the reindeer. I flew up in the air.

Two cherubs flew up to my side. Hamil and Pelie.

“Oh hey guys.” Hamil hugged my neck. Pelie flew up to my face, hands on his hips. “Would you believe I forgot you guys existed?”

Pelie started to scold me.

I snorted. 

“Where are the rest of them?” I asked.

Hamil answered that they’d all gone back to work. Apparently none of them saw the use of checking in with me. Being able to fly was enough for them to know I was okay.

“Emotionless bastards.” I grinned. “I’m overlord to a whole race, and they’re emotionless bastards. There’s a joke here, I can’t see it. My sister would though...”

“Time to go.” North spoke, soft but everyone around heard that.

Sandy threw up a ball of dreamsand. It burst out, falling like golden snow.

Lilac ran to me. She hugged my waist, suddenly looking afraid.

“Come Home.” She begged. “Please, Auntie Killjoy, please come Home.”

I knelt down to her- pulling her in a hug. My wings wrapped around her to keep her close. Lilac started to shake, holding back sobs.

“N-no.” She sniffled. “No. They can’t keep you. They can’t! We need you more!”

“Hey. Stardusts are strong, remember? You’ll be fine-”

“No we won’t! Mom- she’s not the same!” Lilac cried onto my dress shoulder. “We need you back!” She sobbed.

I held her, gently rocking her. Tooth walked up. She stretched her hand out in comfort, I gave her a look to step back. She pulled the arm back.

“Please Auntie...come Home with us. Please.” Lilac cried. “I- I know- I know that if you- Mom didn’t know how to bring you back. And she was getting sad. I thought- this place- you- she wasn’t one so I thought it had to be _ you _ .  _ You. _ You were supposed to come back to Mom. Why won’t you come back?!” She fell apart in sobs. Those stupid silent ones that kids did when they couldn’t stop.

_ ‘Now. This time I mean it. I’ll do better.’ _

“Morgue wasn’t the one to bring me here, was she?” I asked in a soft voice. Lilac shuddered, crying harder. “Come on, then. Let’s get you home.”

I climbed into the sleigh, ignoring the looks from the other Guardians.

“Hey North.” I smirked, ignoring how I felt like I was dying inside. ‘ _ Made it so many decades without feeling guilt...fuck I hate this.’  _ “I  _ did  _ promise she’d get a ride in the sleigh.”

“Oh, get in!” North immediately boomed. “They always love the sleigh.” He boasted.

As I settled in the sleigh, I sat where I knew Lilac could get a better view of the city. Hamil was in my hair now- chittering questions about why Lilac was crying. Pelie was asking what I’d done to make the young child so sad.

Jack sat beside me. I gave him a brief grin, before Lilac’s grip tightened. It had surprised me so I winced. My gaze went back to my niece, wondering how I could fix this.

“Hyah!”

A blue snowflake appeared in Jack’s hand. He blew it out. The thing landed on Lilac’s head.

The tears stopped.

_ “My name is Darcy Anderson. And I’m a Guardian. How do I know that? Because my niece believes in me. When an eight year old believes in you, you can do anything.” _

Lilac pulled away from my arms. She moved to my right, looking out over the sleigh. She laughed in delight, manufactured joy from the snowflake. My hand reached out, taking Jack’s hand and squeezing it tight. I was going to leave my niece- she and her mother were going Home without me. My last memory of her shouldn’t be of my niece crying, or of me slapping her because Criers Get Slapped.

_ ‘I don’t know what’s coming next...but I know it’s going to break my heart.’ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here we are folks, almost done. There’s an epilogue coming out Valentine’s Day- and I couldn’t have planned that better if I tried.  
> This story is a lot of great things to me. It’s the first story I posted on a weekly basis- and stuck with it (with a few outliers). It’s the first story where Darcy Anderson was the MC, instead of her sister. It’s the fastest I have ever finished a story. Ever.  
> Thank you to each and every last person that stuck with me! That stuck with this fandom that refuses to die!


	23. Bring Back What Once Was Mine

Morgan Spencer walked up to the home of Mrs Barclay. She knocked on the door. While she waited, she started wringing her hands together.

It had been a month since her last supervised visit with her daughter. Morgan was anxious for this visit, for a lot of different reasons.

Ever since her first day in this world, she had been without Lilac. Seven months without her daughter outside of approved visits from SS and Mrs Barclay- who was already at the top of Morgan’s list by name alone.

Apparently her sister’s death was well known here- or at least well known enough in her community that they took Lilac away for Lilac’s ‘own safety’.

Which was stupid.

Because Morgan would _ never _ do anything to hurt Lilac.

Ever.

Still. Social Services saw differently.

Even though Morgan looked like a twenty-two year old woman, she had a house of her own and a paying job, she wasn’t considered a proper guardian to her own daughter.

Yes her sister had died.

Died in Morgan’s place.

Darcy lost her head.

Not Morgan.

She owed it to her sister to keep her head together. Darcy had given her life so that Morgan and Lilac would be fine. 

Morgan had to keep it together- or at the very least not fall apart.

She was a Stardust.

Stardusts were strong.

She packed her feelings up, and moved on.

“We got things to do, Stardust.” Morgan reminded herself. “Cry on your own time. _ Criers get slapped. _ ”

Except as she said that last line, Morgan could swear her voice had an  _ echo _ .

Not just a normal echo that comes from caves or big empty spaces. This was a  _ Shining-Murder-Twins _ echo.

She turned around- hoping in her heart of hearts that her sister would be standing there. A smirk on her face. A look in her purple eyes like  _ ‘I’m back, bitch’ _ . Maybe she’d be wearing all black. Or maybe she’d be wearing some kind of Guardian getup, because wouldn’t that just be the  _ best _ worst thing to ever happen to Morgan?

The air behind her was empty. Morgan wasn’t sure if that broke her heart or not.

“Sestra?” She asked in a low voice. “Sestra, are you there?”

There was no reply.

“I believe in you, Darcy.” Morgan spoke into the empty air. “I miss you...Author Darcy why can’t you come Home?”

Morgan wanted nothing more than her sister again. She’d been left alone for seven months- never a good thing. This was the longest she’d been alone since Darcy and Lilac entered her life. Morgan could feel her already weak mental state shudder at the solitude.

She had to go through the motions of life here. Live the life Morgan Spencer apparently lived in this world. Work her awful job. Live in her awful quiet house. No big adventures that left her heart racing, no death defying stunts, she had to be _ boring _ . This world’s Morgan didn’t even get a cool job! She was a  _ secretary _ for a  _ school. _ True torture was sitting at a desk all day with no hope in sight.

And hearing that echo, it brought some joy back to Morgan.

If only she could hear it again.

Darcy loved to do that creepy twin thing. She would talk to Morgan, coordinate their speeches so they could talk at the same time with the same words. Sometimes they didn’t even rehearse. It just happened.

But there was nothing.

“Darce.” Morgan pleaded on the wind. “Please come home.” When nothing came, Morgan fought to not cry.  _ “They’re singing deck the halls, but it’s not like Christmas at all.”  _ She sang.  _ “I remember when you were here, and all the fun we had last year. Pretty lights on the tree I’m watching them shine. You should be here with me, Darcy please come home.” _

Just when Morgan was giving up, when she thought the silence was going to drive her mad, she heard a voice.

“Mom!” Her daughter cheered, throwing a nearby door open.

She put on her best smile, turning around to see her little girl. Lilac had grown so tall over these seven months. Her hair was longer- Morgan knew how much Lilac hated long hair (the fact that it was blonde was secondary)- so Morgan would have to get it cut. Or just take her Home.

This was supposed to be a fun trip.

How had it gone so wrong?

“Hey princess!” Morgan cheered.

Lilac was smiling wide at her mother. “Is it true- what Mrs Barclay said? Are we going Home?”

Morgan nodded. “You bet your britches we are! Now go on and get your stuff.”

Lilac stepped to the side of the door. She came back holding a large suitcase and a heavy backpack, heaving with all the things Lilac had used the past seven months. Morgan had no doubt she had a lot of art to sort through, see what would make the fridge back Home or the walls.

“Whoa!” Morgan laughed. She went to pick up the suitcase. It  _ was _ heavy, appearances did not deceive. She dragged it towards the car. “Geez, kid, did you pack bricks in here?”

Lilac giggled. She followed behind her mom. “Nope! Just my brushes, and scrapbooks, and clothes that I liked, oh and all the gifts you sent me.”

Yes, Morgan had sent her daughter gifts. She had to be sneaky about it. She knew from her own time in foster care how SS was a stickler for rules. She wasn’t supposed to give a gift outside the proper channels. So she just left them on Lilac’s window, whenever she thought her daughter needed a pickup. Special art kits, new 

“Right.” Morgan winced. She hadn’t thought all of those things could be so heavy when lumped together. “Makes sense.” _ No it does not. _ “Whatever. Let’s go.”

Lilac followed her mother. Neither of them said anything to Mrs Barclay. There was nothing  _ to _ say. The woman was a greedy vixen who deserved this level of abandonment.

“Mom I met Santa.” Lilac admitted, just as Morgan threw the suitcase in the back of her car.

Morgan paused. “Oh you met North?” The child nodded. “Awesome!” Morgan climbed into her car. Lilac too. 

Lilac pulled out a picture from her backpack. “And the Tooth Fairy.”

Morgan accepted the picture. Lilac had indeed painted the Tooth Fairy on this, in watercolor. It did a good job capturing the many layers of color of Tooth’s feathers. “It’s beautiful, Princess.”

Now assured that her mother wouldn’t yell at her, Lilac continued on. “And Sandman, and the Easter Bunny, and Jack Frost!”

“Were they cool?”

“The Easter Bunny was tiny at first...I pet him before anyone told me he was supposed to be really big.”

Morgan hid a snort. “Ooh. Sorry, princess, that must’ve-” She snorted again. “-must’ve been awful.”

“It was.” Lilac pouted. She slumped in her chair as her mother started to drive them away.

“And Pitch?” Morgan asked, carefully. She looked in the rearview mirror to see her child. “You met him too?”

Lilac nodde. She was curling her arms around her chest, looking out the window. “He- He was scary, yeah. B-but I was brave. And we- I stayed brave.”

“You look tired, Lilac.” Morgan commented. “Take a nap, yeah?”

“But...Home-” Lilac yawned.

“Time pauses when we leave Home. There’s plenty of time for you to take a nap.” Morgan assured.

Lilac nodded, blinking slowly as sleep was coming to her. 

 

==CR==

 

As mother and daughter drove away, six figures walked out from behind a nearby oak tree.

Cupid- or Darcy Anderson- watched the car go with a flat expression. Not even her purple eyes betrayed the hurt inside.

Beside her was Jack, who had wanted to see Lilac was happy in her life. The kid had been so sad on the sleigh, crying in Cupid’s arms ever since she agreed to be a Guardian.

North stood behind Jack, a somber expression on his face. It was an odd look on the usually jolly Guardian. Bunny, Tooth, and Sandy were hiding in the branches of the tree. They stayed up there as the car drove away. 

Which speaking of, were all the people standing behind Jack. They also came to see the sweet Lilac getting home to her mom. It just had the added bonus of seeing Cupid’s family, before she met them.

“We raised her together.” Darcy admitted, watching the car drive into the distance. The Guardians all listened, not making one snide remark or joke about Darcy raising a child. “Ever since we found her, she’s been  _ our _ kid. When she first came to me about it, I laughed. Morgue...she said, she said that she’d raised me and I turned out kinda...” Darcy knocked on her head. “So maybe with Lilac we’d get it right. Didn’t need to, the kid is perfect. Super perfect.”

If she sniffled, no one ever spoke of it again.

“Such a sweet thing, you’d never know who her parents really were.” Darcy took a breath. “We always told ourselves not to cry until you had time for it. Until the work was done...guess Morgue just decided to never cry ever. We swore to do better for Lilac. She’s...so much better than us.”

Jack walked to Cupid’s side. He put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “She believes in you, she heard you I saw it. Why didn’t you just-”

She wiped away any tears that suddenly appeared on her cheeks. Stupid Hamil for getting tears on her face...from the North Pole... “She’d see me blonde.” Darcy lied easily. “You’re stupid, Jack. You can’t understand how much flack I’d get for this hair. It’s better my sister never see me again.”

She floated up. After watching Lilac cry in her aunt’s arms...they understood. Their own hearts went out for the poor girl. North, Bunny, Tooth, Sandy, and Jack had been alive for centuries- any family they had died long ago.  Darcy was the only one among them with family, and she couldn’t put her family through losing her again.

Tooth was near crying. Bunny put a paw on her shoulder for assurance.

Darcy whirled back around, a false beaming smile on her face. “Well you guys. W better get going.”

“Going?” Bunny asked.

She nodded, flying up so that she was face to face with him. “Better start headed back to the Pole. My cherubs have been setting it up.”

“Setting up what?” North asked, eyebrow rising at her.

“I’m just impressed you got them pass Phil.” Jack remarked.

Darcy smiled with innocence. “Easy. I had a good reason for it. We’re gonna throw me a party, Jack-my-boy.” Darcy explained. She tapped Jack on the shoulder. “Now that I remember stuff, I got it figured out. Just in time too, my birthday’s in a few days. A girl only turns 46 once.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The end.  
> I am not emotionally ready for this story to be over- but here we are. I’m just...each and every person that’s read this, thank you! I’m in awe that so many people stuck around week-by-week!  
> Thank you, and a Happy Valentine’s Day!  
> (Unless you get hit by this Cupid...yeah...nice knowin’ ya!)

**Author's Note:**

> Here it is. Why am I writing it when I have so many other things to write? I have no idea. Have fun with it!


End file.
